Heh... sorry about the lack of updates. This took FOREVER to get me offa mah ass and actually work on it. I finished it in six hours over a time span of three days... AND! Tako! WHO IS AMAZING!!! Corrected it and had it back to me in an hour!
Disclaimer: DO! NOT! OWN!!!!!!! - flail -
By Dan's Mourning Light
Chapter 3: Pain (Sasuke)
There are some lines you really shouldn't cross... ( 1 ) I could have sworn I heard that somewhere... This single thought crossed my mind at the sound of the whip. I could feel the sting of the cat o' nine tails as it made contact with Gaara's skin. My own back was screaming in pain. Around me, I could hear Naruto sniffling, Tsunade cursing, and Neji cradling his own injuries... And to think.. only 24 hours ago we were on Venus, Tsunade slugging me in the face...
The previous day...
"DAMN IT, PACO! SHUT UP!" Tsunade shouted over her shoulder, the dog falling silent in seconds. Beside her, Naruto flinched and ducked his head.
"Damn, woman... do you HAVE to be that loud?" he hissed under his breath.
"Shut up, cock blocker!" Tsunade snapped back. Gaara sighed and shook his head.
"Play nice in the sand box, children." he muttered before turning to me. I relaxed into the chair across from the three. "So Sasuke... mind explaining what happened?"
"You mean..." I paused and looked at the three, six eyes looking back at me curiously. One pair more so than the other two. I sighed and shook my head. "It's fucked up... "
"But I detonated the ship... There shouldn't even be a body left, Sasuke... How the hell are you AND Kakashi alive!? It's too clean! Too convenient!... Too suspicious..."
I flinched. "I know, Gaara... believe me, I know."
"HE'S AN ANDROID!!!" Naruto screamed, sitting up and slamming a hand onto the table. Tsunade punched him in the chest and forced him back into his chair.
"Shut up... Technology, despite its great advancements, has yet to create such things." She snarled and looked to me once more. "Start 'splainin', Uchi-hoochi."
"Kakashi was only shot in the leg... he still had enough pain tolerance to drag himself and me to the last pod. We managed to get out with seconds to spare, according to Hatake."
"Ah yes, my heroic act... I am beginning to regret the decision to save your useless life." Kakashi's voice cut through. I frowned and turned my gaze to the man.
"I didn't ask for your fuckin' pity. I ordered my first mate to blow the ship and leave. I wanted your ass to burn!" I snarled, shoving off my chair and to my feet. The chair skittered back behind me a few feet away before landing on the side. The room fell silent, my gaze locking with Kakashi's. He hesitated, backing up one step.
"I didn't have to save you, Uchiha. I only did it because it was the honorable thing to do."
"No. You just wanted the credit of dragging my ass in for jailing. I spent a year in that hell you call an asylum! Every fucking day I had medications shoved down my throat and my arms tied behind my back! I spent hours in a muzzle, your so called therapists trying to get me to shut my mouth! I have scars from all the times they tried to sedate me just because I opened my mouth to speak! I had a pretty good taste of your honor!"
Silence hung in the room like a suffocating blanket. That feeling... like the whole world's watching you, waiting for you to say something it'll approve of instead of the unadulterated truth. The hair on the back of my neck began to slowly stand on end. Slowly, I turned my gaze to the other three.
"You were... locked in an asylum?" Tsunade's voice finally sounded, her eyes wide. "Why?"
"Sasuke was declared unfit to live in society. While there, they had him listed as having Psychotic Disorder NOS. Hallucinations and delusions of a life as a pirate... false beliefs of a male lover... self proclaimed infamous pirate..." Kakashi started off. I flinched with every word. His smirk darkened slightly.
"You know, as well as any of us, that the diagnosis was wrong." Gaara growled, turning to glare at the silver haired man. Kakashi frowned and turned to look at Gaara now.
"Your point? The truth doesn't matter. He was arrested and confined. No longer my problem..." his frown darkened.
"Until I killed that therapist... What was his name? Oh yes... Sarutobi..." I spat the name out, feeling almost like I'd taken a bite of the most disgusting thing in the world. "He was a kind man... if you like false niceties and hollow words of reassurance... I was just another head to pick. We weren't people there." I shook my head. "Too proud was thine image of Rome in thine eye, ignoring the truth that doth darken the sky..."
A whimper from Paco echoed through the room, the air heavier than before and holding the weight of foreboding in it. My own lungs constricted in an attempt to gather air and draw in some kind of relief from the near crushing weight of fear.
The door to the galley opened and Neji entered, Paco bouncing up to hop around his "favorite person's" feet. Neji sighed and held up a mangled box that had, at one point in time, read "Tampons: Extra large" on it.
"Tsunade... your tampons were ransacked again and, from the looks of Paco, he has one shoved up his ass as well."
And just like that, the air cleared...
-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-
Through out the rest of the day, I managed to integrate myself back into the crew. It was almost like they'd been saving a spot for me all three years I'd been missing. I had known Gaara would have parting issues, but this... was a little too much. I shook my head and glanced around the room I'd be sharing with Gaara. Almost like the past three years had never happened... let alone the year before hand... Beside me, Gaara was sound asleep, his eyes closed and heavily lined with dark circles from lack of sleep. With his eyes closed it was so easy to tell the difference between Kohl and actual skin discoloration.
Slowly, carefully, I reached out and brushed a few crimson bangs from his face. The blazing scar of "love" marred his forehead, still as angry as before. From the looks of it, it would forever be discolored to an angry red. Another reminder of the darker days that haunted all of the happy memories I had of before. Ever since I'd met him, he'd always had this odd allure. Like something exotic that was untouchable.
I wasn't sure if it had been his eyes, voice, or spirit that had captivated me first, but I knew the second I laid eyes on him the first time that I was done for. From there, it was only a matter of time before I managed to put a name to the feelings I was developing.
The first time we kissed is still ingrained into my memory. It had been raining. Thunder rumbled over head and Gaara and I stood in the middle of it, laughing as the rain soaked through our clothes. We'd been outside enjoying the warm, Earth weather while Dan was at the market and getting supplies. He was gorgeous that day... and he is still just as stunning. Everything had been perfect that day until...
I sighed and shook my head, bringing myself out of my daze and back into the real world. Memories were better kept memories. There was no use in reliving them. The past was the past. It couldn't be changed. All that could happen was moving forward.
Morning came around with an ease that was just natural. I hadn't slept much, my own mind traveling into darker things... memories I was hoping to keep suppressed. A shudder ran up my spine, Gaara moving beside me and stirring me, once more, back into reality.
Slowly, he turned and faced me, blinking sleep from his blue green eyes. I locked gazes with him and he offered a small, still tired smile. It took me a moment before I managed to return it. He sat up and cracked his back slightly, a habit I was used to by now.
"Morning..." I muttered, lying back and just watching him wake up. It was a guilty pleasure of mine. I'll admit, it was completely uncouth of me to do this, especially since I often replayed previous nights in my head as I watched him get ready for the day.
"Morning... How'd you sleep..?" he asked, tilting his head, noting my appearance. I must have looked tired.
"Not at all, but hey... it's about time it was the other way around..." I muttered, reaching over and cupping his cheek, thumb running over his lips and cheek bone. He sighed happily, leaning into the touch and closing his eyes.
For being as scarred as he was, his skin was surprisingly soft. Every single scar was smoothed over from years of wear and tear. His skin captivated me. Healing, tearing, ripping, stretching... in a way it reminded me of stone. His body was chiseled, well defined from years of abuse and hard work. Each bone in his body, decorated by a hard and lean muscle, acted as they the mere wiring and frame for something that almost seemed sculpted from marble... and yet sandstone all at the same time. His features were hard, but over time, it was easy to see the subtle changes of his expressions, his body... it became easier to read him. Almost like a geode, weathered down to the core gem in the center.
"Sasuke?"
I snapped out of my thoughts and blinked, looking back up to him. "Yeah?"
"You ok? You kinda... zoned out for a moment..."
"Yeah... just thinking..."
The day was moving slow by the time something actually happened. We were all just sitting around, doing nothing really. Naruto was complaining. Tsunade and I were having an argument about calculus. She was questioning my high school career. I corrected her only to eat my words when I found out she'd taken calc in her freshman year.... Gaara and Neji were conversing quietly, the two of them deep in a silent debate about mops vs brooms. Gaara was vehement about his hate for brooms. Neji wasn't backing down to a mop lover. Suigetsu, Karin, and Jugo were likely sleeping in, thankful to just have a bed to lay in for a while. I didn't blame them. The only other person unaccounted for was Kakashi... that bastard.
The com screen crackled to life just as the ship suddenly rocked to the side. Gai was grinning back at us and I paled.
"Hello, my lovelies! You have just been boarded!" he announced happily. God, his grin was offensive. Oh and, thank you, Captain Obvious, as if we didn't know already...
Gaara snarled and made his way from the floor, where he'd landed in a sprawled heap, and up to the main control panel. "THE HELL ARE YOU TRYING TO BOARD MY SHIP?! IS THERE SOMETHING WRONG IN THAT HEAD OF YOURS!?! I KNOW GONVERNMENT DOGS ARE PATHETIC BUT THIS IS SUICIDE! YOU STEP ONE FOOT ON THIS SHIP AND I SWEAR-!"
"Forgive him, Sir... He's a pirate with no concern to learn any manners."
There was that conniving worm... My gaze snapped to Kakashi, my arms lifting me from the ground and back to my feet.
"I should have had you gutted the second you got on my ship..." Gaara snarled, baring his teeth at the man. Kakashi ignored it.
"The hatch is open for you, Sir..."
-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-
For the second time, Gaara and his crew were crowded around a table, a group of soldiers, Gai, and Kakashi all facing them.
"Sorry for the delay, Kakashi. We started out the second we got your transmission, but... this is a hard ship to find..." Gai muttered, leveling a glare on the five of us. None of us spoke, just glared right back. Tsunade just looked bored.
"No problem at all, Sir, most understood. Pirates are, after all, the masters at running and hiding." Kakashi stated, sneering in Gaara's direction. The red head merely snorted, looking him over in a fashion that might have been threatening if not for the guns aimed at our heads.
"I've noticed we're missing a few heads. Kakashi, you told me that the crew had nearly doubled in size."
My heart skipped a beat as I realized what they were talking about. I spoke before I could stop myself. "They're minding their own business, keep them out of this. They've done nothing wrong..." I guess my tone was a little too defensive. Gai turned his gaze to me, quirking a brow in what I could only guess was disbelief.
"Really now? And what, pray tell, kind of inquiry have you given me to believe you? The way you speak of them makes them sound like captives you didn't want us to find..." he smirked. My heart sank and I bit back a flinch. My silence only seemed to amuse him as he smirked and motioned for a soldier. "Search the ship. Detain them. I want them brought in for questioning." The soldier nodded and took a group with him to do as ordered. They passed us and Tsunade put her foot out, causing the lead soldier to stumble to floor, taking the other seven with him. Kakashi nodded to another soldier and the woman yelped in slight shock as the butt end of a rifle smacked against the side of her head. Gai once more turned his gaze to the rest of us, his smirk widening. "Now... for you five... you're going to be moved to Black Water State Penitentiary... where you'll be allowed to rot until your sentences are carried out.. which could be a while."
I paled, sinking lower into my chair. Not there... not again... It was all I could do to stay alert enough to bite back the bile rising in my throat. Just hearing the name was enough to make me sick. Memories rushed back to the front of my mind, making me cringe, almost writhing in my seat. The memory alone was like a thousand needles pricking at me from underneath my skin, trying to break free, or like something crawling there. This was pathetic. Uchiha weren't supposed to react like this to a simple memory. Memories were in the past. They couldn't cause any more pain. They couldn't change how we acted... or so I was taught... but FUCK! This hurt!
"Why not just kill us now? Save you a shit load of trouble..." Naruto grumbled. I could barely concentrate on what he was saying, the crawling was getting worse.
Gai sighed with agitation. "If it were up to me, I would, but the supreme commander would like to give you special treatment and choose your deaths according to the offense."
The crawling continued.
"Well fuck!" Tsunade snapped, slumping into her seat and crossing her arms. "I'm gonna get mangled, burned, dismembered, and fed to baby squirrels!"
"Huh?" Gaara asked, glancing at the woman. I loved the man, but there were times it was obvious he was from the streets. And god! That fucking! Crawling!
"What? I coulda gone with my second option..." Tsunade snapped calmly, frowning and grumbling to herself.
"Um..."
"Don't ask.."
"You guys will basically be tortured.." Kakashi stated, tone calm, as if he were talking to us conversationally.
The crawling just got worse.
"When commander Danzou takes personal interest in these matters, it always involves some form of torture..." The man continued, chuckling now. That was it. I couldn't take the crawling any more and I couldn't take his face anymore!
I managed to land a hit in Gai's jaw, the left hook having surprisingly flawless aim. He went down and I pivoted, my foot cracking against the side of his head. "Fuck. That!" I snarled. The crawling was starting to lessen.
"HEH!?!" Naruto squawked, jumping to his feet. "SO THAT'S HOW IT'S GONNA BE! THIS IS CUZ I USED YOUR UNDIES TO CLEAN HIME'S BOWEL JUICES!"
Silence... Wait.. "WHAT!?!"
A fist caught me on the shoulder and I pivoted, bringing my elbow into the soldier's nose. From the corner of my eye, I could see the others in much the same position as I was in. We were outnumbered. We were screwed.
"NARUTO! I DID NOT HAVE THE SHITS! THAT WAS PIDDUN' DAMN IT!" the blond woman snapped back, slugging a soldier and taking him down in one hit.
"LIES! LIES I TELL YOU!"
There was a crack and I stumbled to the side, my vision blurring for a moment as I struggled to regain my footing. Gaara moved forward, lunging to keep the soldier at bay while I recovered. Kakashi was quicker. He rammed his shoulder into Gaara, shoving him back against the table. He fell to the floor, head cracking sharply against the metal surfacing.
"GAARA!"
"DI-DI!"
"BUDDY!!!"
I was restrained, wrestled to the ground. From my left I could see Tsunade being grabbed by her hair, Kakashi pulling a gun and resting it against her temple. Naruto, distracted by Tsunade's struggle, was easily caught, the men holding at gun point, three soldiers ready to fire if he moved. Neji raised his hands, surrendering. He knew better than to fight... we all did.
Gai grinned. "Well done, every one... now let's remove these youthful maggots. Sai, you deal with this scrap heap."
"SCRAP HEAP!?! I'LL SHOW YOU A SCRAP HEAP! YOUR MOM'S A SCRAP HEAP!" Naruto snarled, snapping at a nearby soldier. I cringed, my gaze following as they dragged Gaara out.
"Naruto... just shut up." I whispered, head hung. "...Shut up..." ........... The crawling was back.
-0-0-0-0-0-0-
You know that feeling where you just kind of want to curl up in a corner and die? Or maybe the urge to claw through your skull with your fingernails and split your brain in half, if only for a moment's semblance of peace? Me? At that moment I would have given anything to rip my own heart out just to feel anything but this terrible ache.
Ahead of me was the image of Gaara, a dagger being buried into his thigh. He writhed were he was bound, only driving the dagger deeper with every motion. I cringed, sinking closer to the wall I was leaning against. Neji was to my left, trying to untie his bindings from behind himself. To his left was Naruto, beside him Tsunade. Both blonds were watching Gaara just as intently as I was.
"GOD DAMN IT!" Gaara cried out, tensing his abs quick enough to take the shock from a blow to his stomach. "SON OF A BITCH!" The red head gasped for air, struggling to breath through the pain. Another crack sounded, this one echoing a few times over in a round of straight successions. I grimaced. Ribs...
"My buddeh..." Naruto whimpered, watching the scene with a look resembling a kicked puppy.
"Well, ass crackers!" Tsunade growled, slumping slightly. "I can't get out..."
Neji, who had recently given up as well, snorted. "That's the point..."
I glanced them, silently making a vow to kill Danzou the second I got the chance. One good thing I can say about my family.. Uchiha never go back on their word... Not when it comes to this...
Gaara was eventually lead back over to our sides, being dropped down to my right and bound once more. They grabbed Naruto next.
"Damn.. Walk down memory lane..." Gaara grunted. I winced. The blond beside Tsunade was pulled from his spot and dragged to the chair they'd pulled out for him. They hadn't even bothered unbinding him. Tsunade whimpered slightly.
"Don't let them break you..." she whispered. At least... I think she did. I'm not even sure if I'd heard it at all.
Once they had him secured in, a boot was slammed into his face. From across the room, I could almost feel as well as hear Naruto's neck crack. He lifted his head slowly, almost like it hurt too much to do so, and spit some of the blood in his mouth at the floor. The practitioner pulled out a knife, running the tip lightly over the whisker like scars on Naruto's cheeks. He got near the ear and applied pressure.
"DAMN IT! STO-" Naruto fell silent mid cry, eyes widening as the knife sliced right through his cheek and into his mouth. The blade was removed, blood beginning to pour from the wound.
The rest of us were cringing. This was Naruto... the light of the crew, the happy go lucky blond that every one looked to when they needed a reminder that life was still good... that there were still some sources of innocence left. And yet here we were... watching that light be dimmed... hit... after hit... after hit...
It didn't take long for them to finish with Naruto. He was placed beside us once more, the practitioner's gaze falling on me next.
"Grab him... remove his shirt and tie him up with his back out..."
The fabric was torn and I was dragged to the spot and bound. Silence hung heavily in the air. There was a moment of shuffling around and I closed my eyes, silently prepping for anything they might decide to do... I wasn't ready for the sting against my back.
( 1 ) Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. Gotta love Edward....
And yes... I'm evil.... EAT IT TAKO!!!!!