"When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw."
The boy raced the water until finally his light feet ran across the blue ripples. He taunted the ocean innocently as he stayed on top of it, defying its natural danger. But he was only five years of age, and a ninja so young should never even attempt such an advanced jutsu. His black hair was only down to his shoulders, it was long for a child his age- it was long for a boy. He didn't mind it, what was the small difference anyway. He skidded about looking down at his own reflection happily, his golden eyes caught his stare and bounced back. He had bright eyes, eyes brighter than most humans- all humans. He didn't mind that either, how was the slitted orb possibly anything more than what it was- different. He did a few bounces and flips across the uneven waters flow as he practised evading enemies for battles he was sure he was going to win, he wanted to be the greatest ninja ever. He aspired to be as good as his mother and father one day.
He was impressive for such a young ninja, and a well-known proclaimed genius. He grabbed make shift wooden kunai from his pouch, also made to be played with, its fabric soft and light. He threw the kunai at a large rock jutting out from the breaking waves. Smaller creatures skittered around the vast expanse of white sand, unaware of the boy who was standing on terrain the gods had claimed man would not walk on. The boy stopped his jumps and dives to stand in a readied stance before launching to continue fighting invisible enemies with a wooden kunai still clasped in his small hand. The flesh on that hand whiter than the sand, whiter than it should be. He didn't mind that his skin was pale-but the villagers did.
He stumbled and he fell through the water he had been fighting on. There was a loud splash, but not so loud, after all the boy was small and not much water had to move aside to swallow his form. He choked up mouthfuls of water and he took a moment to realize he had even been submerged. The air was replaced by the ocean but in only split seconds he found he was being carried out. He choked softly, his black strands hanging defeatedly beside him, wooden kunai floating in the currents from his previous training. He looked up when focus returned to see he was being held to his father's chest. His father did not share his unique features- his father was not different.
The boy was placed gently on the beach sand, the creatures long since scattering when the father had rushed to the ocean, rushed to catch his child when he made a mistaken step, when he lost focus. His father never scolded him for being reckless, he laughed lightly and asked if his son was okay. He checked him over to ensure he had not swallowed too much water and he stated how very impressed he was with just how capable the five year old was. The boy looked up happily, and although he may have on any other day burst into tears due to his unpleasant fall into the depths, because his father's proud eyes watched him he found no tears surfacing. He found himself explaining how he would train further, become stronger, and in due time become more competent in his training.
His father never worried about his son harming himself badly in his training, he knew to give the boy room to discover what he needed to. After all, what would ever happen when the man's protective eyes were around. It was the same as when the villagers called the boy names, when they whispered he was a monster, or when they accused him of being evil. His father would make his own child deaf to those words, make sure he never heard the insults or feel the hatred. Because once again, how could these words do his child harm if he was around to deflect them? But that was where the problem lay, for what was to happen when the father was no longer there.
Orochimaru startled awake to find himself in a dark cold box. He found out soon enough that it was a cage fit for a dog, with only one side open with bars. Beside his cage was another cage, but he could not see the resident in it. He tussled at the bar but it hurt to move and he winced before he settled back down with a hand to his own stomach. He wanted to call out to check if perhaps it was the copy ninja he had been placed with, but he soon realized it wasn't when the man coughed and then cussed. It was not a sound the Sannin recognised, but it was followed by another unfamiliar voice yelling for the man to shut up. He banged at his own cage to get more of a response from the other inmates and he got one. A low voiced male who grumbled a threat.
The Sannin would have banged again but he was stopped as the entire floor and cage jumped in the air and slammed down. It hurt tremendously, but Orochimaru figured out the humming sound he had heard was the engine of a van, and he was crammed somewhere in the back in a cage as was a few other men. He tried to look out his bars but it was dark, even for his well-adapted eyes. He did not mind the slightly over bearing heat too much, he was always one to appreciate the warmth more than the cold. He was finding the air rather stagnant though, but it was too be expected as he was crammed in a box with many other oxygen stealing humans. He slumped against the back of his cage to find he could hear the shuffling of a resident behind him. He curiously wondered where he was being kidnapped too, it would not be the first time, and he was certain it would not be the last.
He was ever so slightly reassured in the fact that at least he was not alone. There were many other occupants sounding in the vans boot. They must have hit another bump for the cage bounced and banged again leaving all the men wincing and cursing. All expect the snake summoner, he had no voice to cuss with. He merely sat against the back of the cage looking through the thin bars his eyes finally adapting to the area. He realized why his eyes had taken longer, his cage was pretty much against the van wall, and the metal almost completely blocked him into the darkness. The van shuddered and came to a stop, the humming going out. It was replaced by the anxious mutterings and grumbles of the men before a blinding light revealed itself when the vehicle door was aggressively opened. The cages were dragged out with equal attitude and they slammed to the floor purposefully causing their occupants unnecessary pain. Orochimaru held his broken wrist to his chest to shield it as his cage was dropped.
He couldn't help but feel like an animal going to the slaughter house, little did he know he was close enough with his analogy. The cages were opened one by one, Orochimaru could only slightly see from where he was by watching the men's elongated shadows. Suddenly a woman's voice entered the air, her tone dry and uncaring. She spoke about skill and money. Then her shadow stopped by a cage.
"Too scrawny- he won't last a day." She said, the Sannin could then hear her walk away before a gunshot sounded. Her footsteps paused before she released an exasperated sigh and spoke again, "For hells sake Ruien. I didn't give you the fucking go ahead to kill him."
"You said you didn't like him." The apparent Ruien said, he was a familiar voice, the man who had shoved water down the Sannin's throat. Or at least, the man who had passed off a drugged beverage as water the night before the Sannin lost memory. The woman lost interest and carried on examining cages. She was heavily sarcastic with the next few.
"He'll also be eaten alive- but don't kill him you fuck." She would snap, she eventually came to the Sannin's cage and looked at him. It was his golden eyes which caught her first.
"Is this normal?" She said somewhat excitedly, she made to open his gate and the snake almost felt like shying to the furthest corner. He didn't as his pride dared him too. She gestured for him to come out and when he tried to Ruien appeared to drag him out by his hair before grabbing hold of one of his wrists, thankfully the unbroken one. The woman looked dirty, her hair was short and she held a cigarette in her hand while she sported a black dress which failed to look classy and passed off as a cheap and tasteless purchase. She was however taller than him, like all of the men standing around the Sannin for that matter. He wasn't a fan of looking up to everyone both physically and in his rank due to being a ninja. She ran a hand through his hair and then noticed he was injured only after she was done fully freaking him out. He hissed, the first sound he had uttered in what felt like ages. She got a slight fright and stumbled backwards before her cheap heels wavered and caused her to half fall.
Orochimaru watched her with a hint of warning in his eyes, she didn't take notice as she was too preoccupied with her embarrassment of falling. Straight after her tumble Riuen had burst out laughing, and he wasn't silenced by her stare, he still held on to the Sannins arm and his grip tightened uncomfortably when he fell into hysteria. Orochimaru tried to get away from his hold but the man slowly stopped his laughter and looked down at the serpent tugging harshly on his arm.
"Watch your manners ninja." He said, he was making a threat by informing him light heartedly that dare he step out of turn again he would be punished. As it stood the Sannin was not too afraid of anyone's punishment. The woman came to stand by the golden eyed ninja again this time with more guts.
"Like I was saying." She started, "his eyes- they're nothing like I've seen. Is he like the others? He can't be a pure ninja, maybe some kind of hybrid."
"Pretty sure he is just a ninja." Ruien replied twisting the Sannin around to better look at him before taking out what was best described as an adjustable metal dog collar. Orochimaru hissed again but the man was not afraid of the deadly sound. If anything the woman and two of the men tried to act discrete as they shuffled away, putting distance between the unknown male.
The Sannin was horrified to find out he had been rather right in his assumption of the device and it was strapped to his neck. But not before he put up a rather decent fight. He only had one hand that was usable and it happened to be the hand which was being held tightly. He struggled and hissed to get away from the neck piece but it only furthered to annoy the man restricting him. Either way Ruien seemed rather competent at what he did, or even as if he was rather used to the fight for freedom. The snake was eventually settled with force and the collar was around his neck, choking him ever so slightly with the unnecessary tightness. His yellow eyes shot daggers at the man, purely because it was all he could really do now that he was injured and even more breathless than he had been. It was when the collar was on that the woman approached again.
"By the gods themselves." She said, "look at the state he is in. Hope you're not putting him into the ring looking like that."
"What's the difference?" One man said, the group turned to face him, "look at the size of him, they'll eat him alive regardless. At best we can use him as bait."
"They're going to tear his pretty face a part. That's a bit disappointing." One man said running a hand through his hair, another nodded.
"It's a pit fight, not a runway. Get over it." Riuen said irritably.
"We know that you fuck." The man addressed replied, "that's why we said its a waste."
"Then get out of the sport if you're going to be disappointed with the end result." Riuen said with little sympathy to the man's reply. Orochimaru wished he had the full use of his voice, but he could still feel the ebbing hollowness in his lungs and chest. He was handed over to the man who had moments ago snapped at Riuen, and the man took him over calmly. His grip was not as tight, and his presence not as dominating in nature. It was a definite upgrade, but all the same it was not the snakes ideal situation. The man glanced down at the smaller male and then looked back over as the woman and Riuen moved on to other cages. Orochimaru noticed that it was only ninja being taken out of the cages, and he figured that it made sense, as no one was ever going to search for missing ninja. Finally Orochimaru saw Kakashi being taken out of one of the cages. He had jutsu Orochimaru realized hopefully, but then he realized that if he did, why hadn't he used it by then? The copy ninjas bandana had been removed to reveal his red eye. The strange pattern of black embedded in the crimson once again caught the men's attention. Kakashi was more interested in checking up on his lover. He glanced over to look at the Sannin almost apologetically. Guilt was once again reflecting back at the Sannin causing him to wonder why.
He knew it was the copy ninjas most endearing and most challenging trait. He took the blame for everything, and he took the responsibility for everything. If anything happened when he was around he was always the one to take the hit hardest. He felt it was up to him to protect everyone. That it was up to him to defend those he cared about until his own very end. He had his own twisted interpretation of loss. He was always more distraught about letting the person down than his own sorrows. He was always putting others above himself, their needs above his own. It was that reason that he stressed to make sure everyone was fine, and that he placed himself under so much pressure. Orochimaru knew this was unavoidable. He was injured severely and Kakashi had looked for somewhere to take him to heal. Had he not, he would have bled out. And what was more, now that the Sannin thought about it, the two of them had been smuggled out of the woods in the van, they were placed in small metal boxes and driven out past the military circling the forest. It was a feat they would not have managed on their own. The Sannin flashed a sweet smile over to his partner, to try and tell him he was rather fine with the current events. Kakashi seemed puzzled at how the other male could possibly see any good in their situation. But he knew for a fact the snake had been in much worse circumstances and that this probably did seem rather mild in his eyes.
"Hurry up." One man snapped, "we are going to miss the first few fights."
"We going to keep any of them?" Another man asked, "you know for personal use? Or to sell?"
"Let's fight them, then sell the survivors after we know their skill set." Riuen said easily. The man seemed to agree with the answers, and he placed a collar on Kakashi. The copy ninja didn't put up a fight for his, he knew it was pointless as the men had ensured they're chakara was sealed with the drugs they had given the ninja. It troubled the Jonin greatly that they had that power, but it also made him more hopeful. It meant other ninja had their jutsu as well, for if they did not, average men of the city would not have managed to acquire anything to prevent it. The cages were loaded into the van again, the ninja were told to walk. There were about seven NW men and one woman. The ninja were about five and all male, the Sannin being the smallest among them. They walked where they were told to, feeling like dogs when they attached leads to the end of the collar. It wasn't a chain, but it was metal, a thick chord of some kind. Orochimaru didn't doubt that it had more than just the purpose of being dehumanizing and leading them. He was allowed to walk where he pleased to a large degree so he stuck close by to Kakashi who in turn did the same. The other three ninja minded their own business and proved that they did not know one another. They were passing through a desolate rural looking town towards a large bland building. It was a basic shape, a basic colour and the frame work looked old. Regardless of its unimpressive exterior, all the ninja were anxious to see what lay inside of it.
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"They've apparently closed all exits since we escaped." Asuma said to the group as they walked, Ino and Shikamaru looked back at him.
"Really? So they know we escaped then?" Shikamaru said.
"According to this device yes." Asuma said as he messed around with it, "if we master this thing we can get all their information. They've bordered off every exit in the sky and the ground. All except for one. That's under strict watch though. You can't even get close to it, miles before the actual door the military has set up camps leading up to it, you'll be running through and army to reach that door now. Watch dogs, barbed fences, tanks and trenches all lining it. They've even started building a wall with watch posts on it."
"They protect their own citizens less." Hidan commented.
"It isn't the most shocking thing I've heard about those barbarians." Kisame muttered.
The ninja were walking through a forest that was far from the dome. They had headed in which ever direction they could and raced from their captors. Now they wondered what the exact point was. Looking back, they did not know who they would use to get as allies to form an army. After all, most ninja were either missing or else in the dome itself. They were not the best team to attempt to save ninja kind alone either.
Deidara was still silent, he would aid them when they asked and he would speak when spoken to. Other than that he made no effort to be a part of the group, he was too lost in thought. They all slammed on breaks when they sensed someone coming to them. They stood perfectly still, if it were an NW they would be out of luck, as they were still targets to guns and technology even out of the dome. Thankfully however, it was friend rather than foe.
"Sasuke-kun!" Ino said as she rushed towards the black haired male. He stared back at them, haven sensed the team before they had sensed him. The Uchiha looked at them all before greeting Ino stoically.
"I thought all the ninja residing in Konoha were captured." Sasuke said, he was awaiting an answer.
"We broke out." Asuma said, "I thought you were one of the ninja a part of Konoha. Why were you not caught."
"I was not in the village at the time of the attack. And I was not a fool so I stayed hidden in the only village left standing today." Sasuke said.
"I thought the NW army raided all villages. Who possibly survived?" Asuma asked.
"The Hidden Village of Cloud." Sasuke stated coldly, his eyes narrowed, "are you the only ones to escape?"
"Yes we were. At least that we know of." Asuma said, "how did Cloud do what Konoha could not, how did they fend off that army?"
"They didn't. They reside on a moving island. The NW never found them, the ninja of the village decided it was best if they remained a secret." Sasuke said, "how did you all escape?"
The two ninja were bouncing back question after question, all the while facing off unsure of whether they were friend or foe.
"We need to attack the city. We are not safe, hiding won't last forever." Asuma said ignoring the last posed question, "take us to Cloud. We must speak to the Riakage."
"I've already appealed to him about building an army. He won't do it, or at least he wouldn't. How did you escape? Could we use your story as a means to convince him?" Sasuke asked slightly irritated that the older ninja was wasting his time.
"We can speak on the way to Cloud. I'll tell you all we know." Asuma replied. Sasuke watched him for a moment and then took one step backwards before turning around and heading into the thicker part of the woods. The ninja followed him where as Deidara watched him wearily. He was no fan of the Uchiha.
Asuma did as he said he would and explained what little he knew about obtaining the device, and then elaborated on what exactly the technological creation did. Kisame then joined the conversation to explain what lay inside the military's walls, and retold the story Asuma had done a bad job on.
"Orochimaru is not the type to hand over such a device." Sasuke said after Kisame had finished, "why do you have it? Did you take it from him forcibly?"
"You're one to talk Uchiha." Deidara snapped, he earned the attention of the others instantly.
"What brings you to that conclusion?" Sasuke asked stoically.
"You're stating things based on assumption. He gave us that device because he trusts us, and he believes we are allies." Deidara said, his angry eyes snapped back to the path behind them, "he almost died getting this thing to us and we just left him behind. So don't come out of the bushes, after not having to deal with any of the sufferings we did inside the dome, and assume we had to fight him for it. He isn't the same as he was before the original attack by the NW. He has changed, and out of all the people on this planet I don't think you can argue change is not possible. Not unless you admit you still wish to turn on your own allies."
Sasuke watched him for a silent moment, but he was not put off by the words snapped, he was hardly perturbed by the hot headed blond.
"I don't much care who he is today." Sasuke said bluntly, "I simply wanted to know if we do stumble upon him, whether or not I can trust what he says, or whether I may as well run my blade through him."
"As if knowing his motives would change a thing." Deidara said with a stoned stare, "you'd run your blade through your own mother. That's what you Uchiha do-"
He had misspoken in the still irrational teens mind. He didn't react too much, but the Uchiha massacre, his family and his brother. Those were topics best left alone, for disturbing that water would instantly remind the opposer that still waters ran deep. It was in mere moments that Deidara saw an activated Sharingan staring back at him, daring him to say one more word, reminding him of the nightmares he was guaranteed to face dare he say more. The blond hesitated for a moment, he could not pretend he did not fear those powerful eyes, and if he had ever thought Itachi had a stare which could silence a room, the hatred and anger behind the younger brothers eyes would surely remind him to rethink his previous decisions. He had been told Itachi was the gentler one of the two, no one believed it, for the eldest had a dark history. But perhaps history was not always the best thing to base a final decision off after all. He found he had silenced himself due to the males threat and he had remained that way for long enough for the Uchina to assume he had backed down. It angered the blond that the other thought that, but he didn't have it in him to pick up fight again. They moved on through the woods until they reached a waterfall.
The ninja were not all too surprised when Sasuke took them through it. There were many things hidden in mountains, and it was a notorious trade mark of the Hidden Cloud. Naruto haven been the first to be shown one of their caves when Bee had finally trusted him. It was now Sasuke's turn to be trusted it seemed, but the cave was not a cave but more of a tunnel which lead them through the mountain. Once on the other side they were by a coast, where Sasuke proceeded straight across the water. The group followed and looked around. They could only see a vast amount of water. Such a grand village would be noticeable if it were close by. However it was nowhere in sight, so the ninja uncomfortably followed the silent leader until finally he stopped a few miles from the land.
The mountain was still visible but they were too far to make out the coast line. They noticed there was a mild disturbance in the water they stood on. It moved unnaturally, it was unsettling as they looked at the odd patterns, and odd waves moving out of time and out of place. Sasuke preformed a few hand signs and suddenly the entire ocean rippled as a layer of red slipped out from it before a land started to materialize right in front of them. It finally made itself clear to be the giant turtle Cloud resided on, the creature had been cast over in genjutsu of some kind to hide itself until revealed, its strange movement in the water could not be hidden evidently as the ocean was disturbed by its large fins regardless of the genjutsu. However if a plane flew overhead it surely would not be noticed.
Sasuke lead them on to the mountain, not checking up to see if anyone was getting left behind once, it wasn't up to him who lived or died. He didn't care for the others, he had his eyes set only on one thing.
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They were shoved roughly into cages and the sound of men and women yelling and becoming excited could be heard loudly echoing the dark building. There were no windows, no light, and they got separate cages. Kakashi was beside the Sannin, so they sat as close as they could next to each other with the dividing bars between them. Kakashi placed his hand on top of the Sannins slim one in reassurance. The sound of someone screaming in pain shot down the hall and the crowd became louder in excitement before a loud voice boomed from an intercom requesting the arena be cleaned and the new arrivals to be readied. The crowd got even more excited before they settled their sadistic sounding laughs and cheers. Orochimaru glanced over at the door when it opened, a man walked in and assessed the residents. The hall went on for miles, all lined with cages, cages occupied by ninja who sat distressed in the furthest corners. They begged and pleaded, some writhed in pain from infected injury while the rest sat in a desolate silence. The man stopped at the two ninja beside each other. Orochimaru met his eyes fearlessly, but he could feel Kakashi tighten his hand around the Sannins. He knew the copy ninja was not afraid of the man, he was afraid of the man doing something to the snake.
The door banged open again and a half mutilated man entered, being dragged on his chord like leash by a smug NW. He looked around at the cages as well and opened one swiftly before dragging out a resident. The man by the two lovers cage eventually opened the Sannin's door and entered the cage grabbing the lead attached, he didn't give the snake a chance to obey and instantly tugged.
"We going to use this one as bait?" The man dragging the Sannin asked, Kakashi was by the door of his own cage already. The bars were stronger than he was however and as he tried to speak a circuit of electricity shot through him. He cried out softly and held the painful object wrapped around his neck as he fell to his knees. It completely stopped him from being able to move for the next few minutes, enough time for the snake summoner to leave. The latter of which hissed as he saw his lover fall to the floor. He was distracted when he saw another ninja, probably twice the size he was, big enough to physically snap him down the middle he assumed. The man glowered at him evidently full of anger and hate. They were kept slightly a part and the large male was put into a dark room to the left, while the Sannin was taken to the right. The serpent did not know they would end up in the same place regardless.
The announcer boomed again trying to psych the crowd up for the next fight, they did not need much coaxing. They cheered and screamed in anticipation, the sound naturally made Orochimaru feel uneasy, and he was tugged forwards harshly when he slowed down. He saw a light from the open door at the end of the hall and when he got to the opening he looked out into an arena. The stands surrounding it were large, and they were packed with more people than they could actually withstand. Every seat had almost two occupants wedged in it, some men even stood in opposed to waiting for another day. In the centre about fifteen meters a part were two cages, one was already filled with the ninja who had shot a hateful glare at the Sannin moments ago. He seemed ready to kill whoever he set eyes on, all except the NW men around him who he, although being almost twice their size, looked up to. It was then that the Sannin reminded himself to admit where he was. It was the same as dog fighting, except this time they were using ninja. They were expected to tear apart their opponents, and look up to the NWs as masters. Orochimaru was shoved into the empty cage, his lead was taken off but the collar remained. Then the arena locked itself, the door now sealed off, the crowd protected by a domed cage which was then sealed with glass. Not even the roof was open to allow the ninja access to the crowd.
Orochimaru let his eyes fall to the other ninja, there was one fundamental difference between the ninja and dogs however, they knew what the men wanted and they knew the unfairness of it all. They could refuse the battle, the Sannin stared at the enraged man hopefully, perhaps they could redirect that anger at the NW men rather than their own kind.
"I won't fight you." Orochimaru said to the man, but his voice choked in fatigue.
"Then you'll die new blood." He said, the name agitated the legendary ninja. Was this man so ignorant that he thought it a good idea to test the others patience. Then he remembered that with no jutsu, he was as good as dead compared to such a man. That was his thought before he felt a burst of chakara through his body. He looked up to see men by machines which looked a great deal like what the military had when they analysed the ninja. They would control the strain of jutsu- but the Sannin would not use it on his chosen foe. The doors opened and both ninja vanished from the cages. They had different ideas on what they were planning on doing however. Injury slowed the Sannin down for mere moments and the man took that upper hand to pin the snake to the floor. He raised a hand and chakara formed around it to add to his power. He never managed to hit the snake summoner, for he regenerated eagerly his pinned body turning to smoke while he slipped free into an uninjured form.
He couldn't believe how relieved he felt being able to breath normally, he felt alive, restored and completely renewed. He forgot just how grateful he was for his ability to regenerate. He moved easily out the mans way as he struck again, the crowd roared with excitement and the Sannin looked up at them with narrowed eyes before vanishing from his foe and appearing by the dome. He summoned snakes which appeared from his sleeves. They rammed into the glass attempting to break the dome shielding the crowd. His attempts to hurt them failed, and for some reason it made them all the more eager on the fight, evidently thrilled by his tenacity and spirit. The large ninja didn't join him, didn't realize the Sannin was legions superior in fighting. He attacked the legendary ninja again and forced him away from the glassed dome.
"If you fight me-" the Sannin hissed, "you'll be forcing me to kill you."
The man roared out in frustration as he struggled to land a blow on the much smaller ninja. The announcer boomed with an exhilarated voice, ranting about how the tables had turned, how the smaller ninja was somehow evading the other effortlessly.
"Fighting one another is pointless we should both attack our captors." Orochimaru tried again, this time he only narrowly escaped a hit. It angered him.
The large ninja attacked and the smaller one dodged for another few minutes, the crowds voices growing louder and louder. Orochimaru tried convincing the man to back off, to aim his attacks where they mattered. He threatened the man and reminded him of their power difference, he tried everything, but the man ignored him until the NW men by the machine gave them more chakara to encourage rougher fighting.
With this burst of power the man became more violent and determined, the Sannin was losing his patience and he couldn't dodge the man for eternity.
"Why are we attacking our own?" Orochimaru hissed as he knocked the man back to gain some space, he made sure not to harm the man in the process. Perhaps he would grow tired.
"Fuck you- we are not the same!" He spat, "I know who you are you freak-"
The man was silenced as the Sannin counter attacked. He had not aimed to hurt the man once, he had only done what was necessary to dodge him. He felt slightly childish attacking only when the man personally offended him, he tried not to lose his temper when people insulted him. It looked weak, he didn't want his enemy to know they had wounded him. However haven tried to appease the man only to be scorned made the Sannin collapse his morals for a moment.
The man spat blood to the floor and wiped his lip, his next attack was more determined to draw his opponents blood, more determined to cause pain. The man never landed a blow.
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Kakashi could hear the cruel sounds of ninja fighting. The sound of chakara bursting around its host as it battled to keep itself as the victor. It sounded like a long fight, the crowd gave the impression it would stay that way until there were gasps and laughs and the announcer spoke again.
"What an odd turn out." He laughed into the microphone causing the copy ninja to cringe at his somewhat sadistically amused voice. Kakashi felt slightly guilty for his thoughts, but he couldn't help that he hoped his lover had killed the other ninja if it did come down to that. He didn't want to lose the person he cared about, and he would much rather ignore the irrelevant death of a ninja he never even got to see. The doors slammed open and the Sannin was brought in, he got into his cage and moved over to the copy ninja. He was without injury, and the old wounds which plagued his form were now gone. Kakashi wanted to come to him but he was pulled out harshly by his collar. Orochimaru hissed as they rough handled the other but he had no way of stopping the man leaving. Kakashi was pulled down a dark hall as was another man about equal height and stature to the Jonin. The white haired Shinobi was calm as usual, never once letting any emotion flicker through his eyes. His opponent looked arrogant and smiled at the copy ninja before they parted ways.
They were both shoved into the cage and their leashes removed. Chakara flared around both of them however it was obvious that the copy ninjas was more controlled. The gates opened and the man across the field rushed him with chakara flaring around his body aggressively. It was far too honest an attack and the skilled Jonin dodged it without even trying. The crowd burst into applause as they carried on their one sided fight. Much like the Sannin previously had, Kakashi did not fight back but simply dodged. He tried to talk the man down but it became apparent that he was not willing to even listen. He didn't appear human as he fought and it made it hard for the Jonin to sympathize with him. Finally, Kakashi decided he was wasting his time merely dodging, he would eventually tire and he wasn't prepared to get hurt over someone less than human. He let blue lightening screech around his arm and the crowd gasped in amazement before cheering in an excited frenzy. He skidded past the man as the brute attempted to punch him before he counter attacked with the chidori. The man screamed out and landed harshly on the floor, rolling a few meters as he tried to stand up. He fell twice and then seemed to give up raising one hand to signal the copy ninja to stop.
Kakashi gave the man a moment, the mans eyes lifted up to his and they were full of fear and panic. He choked out a beg, a human sound, one the copy ninja could easily relate too.
"Wait-please don't kill me-" he said quickly, on one hand the Jonin knew if the tables had turned the other may very well have not stopped for him. At the same time, this man had been fighting for much longer in the hellish environment. He was likely a ninja of a great nation who had also attempted to reason with his first opponent. It was likely he had been severely injured, that he had been forced to kill or be killed and that he had chosen to live. There was nothing inhuman about the man, it was the spectators who had lost their sense of humanity. It was the people who caged them, harmed them and cheered for them to shed blood. Kakashi watched the man uneasily. How quickly had he turned to kill the man? Within seconds he had decided another life was void because he deemed him inhuman. The chidori around his hand died into nothing and he took a step back. The mans eyes widened, he evidently had not been shown mercy before and he seemed on the verge of not believing the act. The crowd waited for several moments and then started to get angry. They weren't satisfied with the lack of blood nor the lack of violence.
Both ninja were electrocuted from above but the copy ninja made a point of not flinching. Again they felt the sharp pang of unnatural warning. It eventually brought the copy ninja to his knees and he clutched at the collar knowing full well where the sensation was coming from. The man beside him didn't keep his pain hidden as he lost his temper. He threw agonized eyes up at the copy ninja who had braced himself to the pain and stood up breathlessly.
"Just kill me." The man said, the fight no longer in him.
"No." Kakashi replied, the pain was shooting through him, breathing was becoming hard and speaking would soon be impossible. He flashed warning eyes at the man when he took a laboured step towards him.
"I won't last my next fight anyway." The man gasped out, he fell a few meters from the copy ninja when he tried to walk. The crowds disapproval grew when the man collapsed. The voltage increased and Kakashi fell to one knee again. He wasn't sure what they wanted him to do, they had successfully debilitated him with their tactics, he would not be able to fight anyone in the condition he was now in. Kakashi could feel the angered eyes pinned to his agonized form, he ignored their cries of annoyance as best he could and focused on remaining awake. The man beside him went limp and the electricity died.
The copy ninja watched his still body, his own chest heaving from the fatigue he now felt. He could have sworn they had destroyed his insides and he dared not move for the first few moments, almost certain he would simply break if he did. Two NW men came in with smug smiles as they attached a collar to the copy ninja to lead him off. He was slow, his muscles still trying to shake the feeling of the burning mechanical punishment, but they showed him little patience and he stumbled after them. He was dragged down the hall and the sound of angry and frightened men filled his ears, then a familiar hiss.
"What did you do to him you bastards!" Orochimaru snapped as he saw his lover half tumble into his cage, his body still slightly shaken by the high voltage. The men cussed rudely at the Sannin and banged on his cage.
"Get back." They muttered, he did so, but only so that he could get closer to Kakashi.
"Are you alright?" The Sannin asked, evidently desperate to get to him and distressed that he could not.
"I'm fine." Kakashi said, he coughed and then added a quick word to try convince his partner again, "it's nothing, I just need a moment is all."
Orochimaru looked angered that he could do nothing, but as he usually did he kept his emotions to himself and settled next to the bars.
The men grabbed two more ninja and left, they did this several times until they opened the Sannins cage. They dragged him out and he defiantly tugged back. Kakashi had no energy left to protest when they removed the serpent, he watched them go however and decided he probably didn't need to anyhow. The Sannin was doing enough protesting for them both.
Authors note- Part one of the chapter, it was too loong to post as one whole chapter. Enjoy~
