Chapter Three: The Unknown
The afternoon was nothing special. I never looked forward for the afternoon. That was the time that we took a break. It was boring. I was in my plain room that Oro-sama gave me. The reason I never liked being in my room because it reminded me of the old Anko. Very plain and boring. Kabuto and Oro-sama were gone for the day. I walked around the house and noticed that I was alone.
Jealousy leaked out and I punched the wall that was nearby.
He always takes him to who knows where! When would it be my turn when he has some alone time with me!
I opened the sliding door to the never ending forest. The grand doors that lead into Kohona were closed in the North. I was nowhere.
The outside was a mess. I began to clean what I could. I wanted to surprise Orochimaru-sama and Kabuto-kun when they came back. I reached down picking up the weapons that we used when we spared then some trash here and some shredded clothes there. Cleaning was something I loved. I remembered when the favorite time I loved cleaning was Aniki's room. He was a real messy person.
I laughed alone while remembering.
After I was done from outside I went on cleaning the inside. The small house was two floors. The second floor was the rooms and the first had where we had our meals and talked.
I was washing the dishes when I heard a small yelp. I dropped the dish back into the sink. The class of glass hitting the metal sink made me jump back falling off the small step I had to use to look over the sink. I fell on my ass but my body was cold with fear.
"W-w-what was that?" I whispered. The faucet pushed the water out of its mouth washing the dirty dishes. With a shaky hand I turned it off and I kept my eyes at the doorway. What if someone was in trouble? I had to help them right?
Each time I took a closer step my head imagined a monster with big soulless eyes, sharp teeth that could eat a person whole. No! I would not let me fall victim to my fears. I jumped out of the protection of the wall and was faced with an empty living room.
"I must have been imaging it ha-ha!"
I walked back into the kitchen when I heard it again. I never liked showing that I could be easily scared. I growled when my back smacked against the door frame. I arched my back when the pain took me by surprise. I grabbed my chest feeling my heart racing. I took deep breaths then exhaled them.
Help me… Help me please! Ahhh oh please heeelllllp!
Maybe it will go away if I ignore it… It's not going away! Make it stop! I cried in my head. Hearing the helpless shouts for help brought back the first time my parent's laid a hand on me.
Flashback
I was gathering my books of Famous Shinobi when I heard the door pry open from my bedroom. My dad was drunk and my mother was right behind him. Aniki was at his friend's house. My parents both had lost a friend in a batter and their only solution was to drown their sorrow with sake. I looked at them trying to read my parent's mind.
"Papa…" I went back against the book chest and crouched down. My father slurred his words at me and swung the bottle of sake on at my head. The bottle popped to medium size pieces when it crashed into my head. I fell to the ground holding my head feeling the hot wet blood staining my face. He swung again with the broken bottle and the sharp tips of broken glass scratched my face. My face was bleeding and I heard my mother laughing madly.
They were both crazy. I screamed begging for help but my mother's cold hands muted me. She pulled me into a bear hug from in front and held me in front of my father. I scratched and clawed at my mother but nothing that I did bothered her. I felt my father's hand reaching and ripping my shirt from my back. I was hopeless. I felt him drag the broken bottle on my back several times each time going slower. They both wanted me to see my skin open up and bleed.
I felt his hands touching the wounds then he tried to force his fingers in them. The world was spinning in my head. My legs wet by the blood that leaked out. After that I blacked out.
I woke up on my bed on my tummy. Aniki was by my side. That was the first time I ever heard him cry. Why was he crying? I squeezed his hand hoping to cheer him up. His head shot up.
"You're okay." He said. "I was scared that they gone too far…" He knew. I cried again but in happiness that he saved me. "I'll get the bastards that broke in the house and attacked you."
"There wasn't-"
"They will get their punishment I'm sure of it." My father's said. My body went cold. They lied to Aniki. My mother came rushing at my side with fake tears and kissing my forehead.
"My poor daughter… I'm sorry we left you alone. We didn't know."
"Let's go and let Anko have some rest she's been through a lot." Father then said. My mother left my side just as quickly as she came. Aniki stayed where he was.
"I said lets go."
"I'm going to stay here with her. I don't want anything else to happen to her." Aniki's words brought back tears.
"She'll be fine. I'll stay with her if you want." Father suggested. I glanced at Aniki and wanted to shake my head and protest but the look on his face made me hush.
"Go and get some rest Aniki-kun. I'm sure that the people that did this to me won't be coming back with dad around." Sounding reassuring was hard to do. I didn't want Aniki to leave but I didn't want to look at his sad face and kicking himself over a lie that our parents told him.
I lied to keep him safe. I didn't want him to know what had happen. He looked up to father and mother and I didn't want him to feel betrayed. So I lied each time they abused me. Each time something different happened. I tripped or fell, got in a fight with a girl, or a dog attacked me. Each time I lied I died. Aniki soon stopped asking and ignored me. I guess because I was nothing but trouble or seeking out attention. Then when he saw and heard what really happened he did nothing.
End of Flashback
I'm not going to end up like my family! I followed the voice to a hallway that led to the living room. It sounded like a woman's voice. It gave me more of a reason to save her. I stopped in front of a wall automatically I pressed my hands on it pushing it and shoving it for it to open. It wouldn't budge. I focused my chakra on to my hand. I closed my eyes raising my fist in the air then like a sling shot I let go. The hidden door popped open to a small stair case.
The woman's cries for help were strong down to the unknown. I ran down the stairs and to a work shop. A sadistic work shop. Bodies were everywhere, some were in tanks, others hanging, or on medical tables. The ones that were hanging smelled of rotten flesh their skin was purple with a mustered yellow color. Their eyes were open with their mouth letting out a soundless scream. The bodies in tanks had a mask over their face that helped them breath while some had none. On the medical tables bodies were cut open. Their intestates pulled out from them. They smelled fresh. My stomach turned.
"Please help me!" The woman's voice came from the side of the tables were. I walked over the only female body that I could fine the small amount of light that was down in the dungeon look alike. She was naked, her hands and feet were tied down by bulky metal cups that was bolted on the table. She had short blond hair and her eyes were a light brown. She pulled at her arms trying to pull herself away from me. She screamed and begged for me not to hurt her. I guess she thought I was the person that did all this.
"It's okay! I'm here to help!" I said to ease her and it worked. She opened her eyes and stared right at me.
"You have to let me go please before they come back!"
"Okay…umm how do I get you out?" I asked. I looked at her restraints and it had no key hole. I looked around the table but found nothing. "I don't know… I don't know!" I cursed at myself for being stupid. I pulled at the metal cups but each time I did I felt my chakra being sucked from me. These weren't ordinary metal cups.
"He used a key I know he did." The woman said in a shaky voice. "Who are you girl?"
"It's not the time to make introductions! I need to find a key… oh here we go!" I found a small snake like key on a desk that was nearby. I ran back to her and had another quest: to find the key hole. It didn't take long before the bolts opened releasing their prisoner. I ran to help the young lady out of the table. Before I reached up to her I grabbed I medical cloak that was on a dead corpse. She put it on without any complaints.
"Thank you…Thank you…" She said over and over again as I led her up stairs into the house. I held on to her waist as we walked into the forest. I didn't know where I was going but being in the forest meant more cover and it gave us a head start to get away.
"Who did this to you?" I asked her. She looked at me with a strange look in her eyes.
"I never got your name. You know it's rude for a person who saved another not to give them their name." She said
"Mitarashi Anko ma'am." I looked up her with a smile. Her eyes glowed at my name. Why? I had a sinking feeling. I felt I needed to get away from this woman. Her grip tightened on my shoulder as she fell. I reached out towards her when her hands shot up pulling me under her. I struggled but it was no use. She leaned down sniffing me then licked my cheek. "Get off me!"
"My name is Tanaka Yuki. I'm here to collect the bounty on you." Her hands went up to my face. I felt her nose gliding down my neck to the center of my chest. "Your parents must love you a lot if they paid me to find you." I was about to scream when her hand slapped my face. "You shut the fuck up you little bitch." Her tone changed. She grabbed both my hands and placed them above me. Her legs held down my own. Yuki stared down at me with her excited eyes. Her female features dissolved into a man. My head began to spin.
I helped a sick Bounty Hunter get away from Orochimaru's grasp?
XXX
Orochimaru and Kabuto came to the house. Kabuto called out his greeting and waited for his sister to come down with a jealous look. He called out again but no footsteps where heard no voice was spoken. The two men exchanged glances and searched the house. Kabuto searched up stairs and yelled down that I was clear. Kabuto took his time with the stairs having little worried but knowing Anko she was probably at the river bank that was close by but they passed the river back while coming home and they didn't see her.
"What's wrong?" He asked Orochimaru who was staring at the broken door from their secret room. Kabuto ran down stairs but found nothing but the bodies except for one. One table had a missing body. Knowing who the bed had he raced back. "He's gone and I think he took her."
"Call Aniki and Itachi I'll go search for them. Knowing the bastard he loves young and innocent girls and Anko is just want he loves. Hurry up and call them." Orochimaru disappeared in a flash. Kabuto pulled out his cell and dialed several numbers before dialing Aniki. He was running after Orochimaru when Aniki finally answered. "Anko needs you." He said in a calm voice but Aniki knew it was bad news. "You know where we are and we're going to the forest." He hanged up before Aniki could ask any questions. Each minute that passed Yuki had more fun.
Few minutes later a small search party of six people was searching. Kabuto and Orochimaru were together. Aniki and Dediara were another. Itachi and Konan were the last to arrive. They didn't meet they didn't ask questions. They knew who needed to be found and they needed to do it quick before Orochimaru lost his mind knowing one of his perfect students is out there. They didn't care who she was they just knew it was an order to save her. Since when did the Akatsuki do a rescue mission? Dediara and Itachi wondered that and were annoyed but mostly Dediara because they never had the chance to know or see Anko.
Konan stopped in her tracks and her body dispersed into thousands of butterflies. Itachi followed the tan color butterflies as they flew up in the air created a thick cloud in the sky. In the sky Konan looked through her countless of eyes looking at every direction, every tree, and every empty space that was in her radar. She knew Anko for three years and within those years she got close. Then something inside her pulled her in a direction that was few yards away. As the butterflies looked over head she saw them. Yuki was on top of Anko doing something. She gathered herself together while Itachi called the others.
Yuki was caught by surprised when the unknown woman appeared the nest of butterflies and then followed by a man. He stood up from the ground. Anko had her eyes half open, Konan felt sick at the expression the girl had. It was nothing. She had no expression. Her body was cut from every angle and every part. Her shirt was ripped and on her body she had several kunias piercing her body. Her hands and legs were tied by tree trunks. She wanted to turn away but her eyes were glued to the young girl. Konan was going to make this mad man pay.
XXX
The rest of the group arrived when Konan had Yuki's head in her hands. Itachi had Anko and gave her to Aniki who pushed through. Anko was in a trance, lost in the free world that she created in her mind. Orochimaru and Kabuto were next to Aniki. Konan dropped the head then examined the child. She took Anko into her arms and without a word she took her back to the house. The guys looked at each other not knowing why Konan took an interest into Anko. Dediara and Itachi left after being excused from Orochimaru.
"Who sent Yuki after in the first place?" Aniki said while walking back with the other two guys.
"Who do you think?" Kabuto answered grinding his teeth. In the three years that he knew Anko he grew to love her.
"After all this time they still hate her. I should have known. I would be paying a visit-"
"No you need to go on as if nothing happened." Orochimaru interrupted. "I know it angers you but I hate to say this but we have bigger problems. The Hokage of the Village Hidden in the Leaf is beginning to have suspicious on me. He heard rumors about my experiments and is requesting that Kabuto and Anko return back to the Village until he finds out the truth." Orochimaru kept walking as he explained. "We can't stay here. I'm sorry Aniki but I have to let Anko go."
"You can't do that! If you do then there is no telling what they would do!" Aniki got in front of the pale man.
"I'm sorry but it's the best I can do for her safety."
"No you're not. You are doing this so you don't have extra baggage."
"Anko is not 'extra baggage'! She's a child that Oro-sama is seeking a better life. If she stays with us she would be even more in danger. In the village she would be question but she doesn't know anything so they can't possibly do anything to her." Kabuto grabbed Aniki's arm and pulled hard. "Are you sure that you don't her to cause YOU any problems?" Both men glared at each other. Orochimaru sighed.
"She's staying here that's final!" Orochimaru shouted. Aniki pulled away from Kabuto's grip and entered the house.
The older brother entered the room where Konan was treating Anko. He sat next to the edge of Anko's bed. Konan was putting the last of the bandages on her arm. "You know Orochimaru is right. If she does stay with us then she would be targeted and she would be running all her life and then only bring more misery into her life. Being in Konohamaru is the safest place for her."
Anko knew every member of the Akatsuki and she knew them as family. They had to somehow convince her to keep her from talking. Konan was Anko's big sister that she never had. Konan never showed it but she knew what was best for Anko. Aniki had to let his sister go for her own good. "Konan I have a plan." The blue hair woman turned to face him and left with him. The plan was set and now it was only of matter of time before the ANBU came and take Anko away.