Yo fiendies! How was everybody's Thanksgiving? Hope it was great and that you all ate lots, I know I did I really don't have too much to say so I'll just shut up and get the disclaimer over with so you all can read the chapter.
A special thanks to AmberStallion, Eagle-Owl, and Hyuuga Niranami and to all of my other reviewers as well! Also oodles of thank yous to my beautiful beta xoayamexo!
Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto
'…' thoughts
"…" spoken words
Attacks/Techniques
o-o-o-o-o-o-o
Neji awoke with a splash of water in the face. He sputtered on the liquid as he shook his head to clear his blurred vision. The first thing that he noticed was that it hurt, a lot. A pretty close second was that he was tied in a similar position to the previous night, except for the fact that his wrists we bound together.
"Good to see that you're awake, brat. Hope you enjoyed your nap, 'cause it's time for more 'fun.'" Toya laughed malevolently. "Our last couple of battles proved that the fights are more of a health risk to me than a benefit, so we won't have any more of those." Neji smirked at this; even in ailing condition he could still hold his own pretty well.
"We'll see whose smiling after tonight." And the bounty hunter turned and headed to the blaze that he had set up while the prodigy slumbered. As he did this, said prodigy noticed the stars overhead and realized that it was, indeed, night.
As Neji struggled to clear his mind, Toya headed back to the boy heated sai in hand. The Hyuuga's eyes widened and he fought to control his breathing.
"Are you scared of me, brat?"
"I fear few things in this world; don't flatter yourself." The bounty hunter's eyes narrowed.
"Let's see, last night I promised two scars for our next round. I'm not usually one to break promises." Without further ado, the sadistic man plunged the scalding sai into the genin's arm. Toya planned to trace a scar that was short and rested on Neji's forearm, so that he would not cause the boy to black out before he was done.
The Hyuuga stared at the sky, trying desperately to retreat into the recesses of his mind, but found it increasingly difficult as the pain did not lessen. Before long, however, his beaten body could take no more and choked cries filled the clearing.
"That's better…but we're not done yet." The Konoha nin did not know why this man bothered so much with pointless words; of course they weren't done, he knew hell was coming for him tonight. "Now what, though. I don't want to have too much fun with your arms…I mean, there are other places to inflict pain. Your legs seem too whole for my liking, but I'm not carrying you the rest of the way. That leaves your chest and back, but what to do to them?"
Toya took a few moments to think of a new sadistic way to cause pain, and Neji took a few moments to regain his bearings. He refused to give in to this man, he outright refused.
"A-hah! A little old-fashioned, but our ancestors did know how to inflict pain quite well." The dark-eyed shinobi furrowed his brows and muttered to himself. "I'll need to turn him around then…I know what to do." He reached into his pocket for his leverage item…
…but came up empty.
"What! Where is it?" He searched his pockets and kunai holster and even his supply case but came up empty. The bounty hunter was fuming, and in his rage, he turned to Neji.
"Where is it? I know you have it," he snarled.
"What?" The Hyuuga was hurting and exhausted; in no mood to play with his captor.
"My stone! I know you took it! Tell me where it is!" Toya stormed up right up to the genin and grabbed his throat, cutting off the boy's air supply.
"I—don't know." Neji choked out, hazy yellow spots danced before his eyes and he felt himself slipping away. Just as he was about to black out, the bounty hunter relented.
"Fine, I don't need it anyhow…like you're a threat anymore. But just to be safe." Toya performed the set of hand seals and the pale-eyed shinobi readied himself for the pain he knew was coming.
And surely enough it came, Neji tried to be strong, but was fighting a losing battle. He could not take it, and after a few moments he let out pain-filled moans.
Apathetic Toya did not seem fazed. He merely sliced at the knot binding his bounty with the now-cool sai and did not catch the Hyuuga as he fell roughly to the ground.
While he was lost in his own world of pain, Neji saw pictures of his father, his team, and his friends flash before his vision. He tried to focus on them, to block out the torment; but it was in vain.
The Konoha nin barely registered falling to the ground and being lifted back up, and re-bound to the same tree. He was facing the trunk and his hands were tied around it as were his ankles. Moving was no longer an option.
Toya watched his prey suffer for another moment before releasing him from the painful effects of the wards.
"Now, brat, is when I teach you pain."
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
"Alright team, move out!" The group of faithful genin set out at a fast pace for a few hours, but even their fiery spirits grew dim as time went on.
"Shikamaru-kun, we've been going nonstop for six hours, can't we stop for the night? If we keep up this pace, we'll be too tired to save Neji at all."
Lee's heart clenched as he remembered saying almost those exact words to the Hyuuga days before.
"I suppose you're right. We'll have to stop here. Besides, its quite dark, searching now is pointless." But Tenten would not have it.
"You guys don't get it. Neji is dying! We have to save him now!!" She stopped when she felt a hand on her shoulder.
"Tenten, Shikamaru is right. We need to be in peak condition if we want to save anyone." Lee tried to smile. "Neji is strong; he won't go down without a fight."
The weapon's master nodded and looked at the ground, defeatedly. The team wasted no time in searching for leaves and pine needles to use as make-shift bedding and soon they had a temporary campsite.
"Who wants to take first watch?"
"I'll take it; I won't be able to sleep anyways." The pink-clad kunoichi raised her hand grimly.
"I will take the second," Lee offered. "You are still young; we will take watch tonight."
"You're only a year older than us! You think you're better than us? Neji's arrogance is rubbing off on you."
The green beast's eyes flashed. "You will not insult my best friend in my presence." He replied in a deadly calm. "Get to sleep all of you. We will wake you when the sun rises."
The group went to bed without complaint, not wishing to mess with an angry Lee.
He himself headed over to his pallet, before he noticed his sullen teammate taking refuge in the tree branches above.
"Tenten?"
She didn't respond.
"Tenten, Neji would not want you to act like this. Everything will be alright." The weapon's mistress smiled; if her teammate was not ranting about the springtime of youth, she knew he was serious.
"I know, I just worry about him. He acts so tough, but I know he's not. Everyone sees his reputation or his skills, but I know him. The real him. He's scared and sad inside, and I don't want him to suffer anymore."
Lee knew his friend was distraught and wanted to cheer her up and distract her with happier thoughts.
"You like him, don't you?"
A dark blush appeared on Tenten's face, apparent even in the darkness. "No, I do not!"
"I think you do!"
The bun-adorned girl chuckled, "It's that obvious, is it?" The taijutsu-master nodded enthusiastically. "Well, I guess there's no use denying it then." She paused. "Thank you Lee. You should get some sleep before your watch." And as her teammate prepared to leap from their perch, she added, "And Lee, it's not your fault."
The green beast smiled and returned to his sleeping area, and slumbered peacefully until his watch.
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
Neji had barely regained his senses when he heard a chilling laugh on his right. He could barely move his head to the source of the sound and he saw his captor with a strange leather object in hand. He watched as the man shook the kinks out of the object and something in his mind clicked. It seemed even more obvious as Toya walked up from behind the boy and lifted his jacket and secured it, leaving his back bare.
CRACK
The Hyuuga jerked as much as the ropes would allow him when he felt a line of fire whip across his back. The leather caught on his hair and ripped his head back with the force.
"Damn. You aren't worth your hair(1), brat. Maybe I'll remedy that. Yes, I think that's what I'll do." Neji could only wait and press his forehead to the rough bark trying to soothe himself. He was interrupted when his captor wrenched his neck back roughly by the hair. He looked up into the unfeeling eyes and then to the kunai in Toya's hand. Expected pain, he prepared his body, but none came. His head was released and he heard something fall to the ground."
Something silky touched his ankles and he realized what happened. The bastard had cut off his hair.
But the genin had little time to think about it as another lash adorned his back. He writhed as much as his bonds, and soon cries were being torn from his throat. Once again pictures of loved ones floated before his vision. Hizashi, Lee, Tenten, Gai-sensei, Naruto, Hinata…he didn't realize it, but names became distinguishable in his cries. As the torment continued the pictures seemed to get farther and farther away until they were pinpricks in the distance.
CRACK
Otousan.
CRACK
Lee, Gai
CRACK
Tenten, Naruto
CRACK
Hinata
He tried to keep silent, to be strong for them. They thought he was a genius, he needed to be a genius; for them. But he could not. No matter how he tried, the pain got the better of the Hyuuga.
After what seemed like forever, the blows stopped falling and Toya put away the whip.
"Alright brat, hope you liked tonight. Cause I was going easy on you these past two days. What my employer will do to you is, from what I hear, worse than Hell itself."
Neji barely cared, he just wanted to die. Maybe then, the torture would end.
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
Yipes! Don't kill me guys! I know I cut off his hair, but it'll grow back eventually, right? Looks around nervously and gulps I'll be in hiding from you guys til next time! EEP!
(1) In ancient times the worth of a warrior was judged by the length of his hair. Long hair proved to be a handicap, constantly getting in the fighters face, and giving his opponent plenty of opportunities to grab it and end the battle. As a warrior's skill increased, he could afford said handicap.
Please review on the way out!
Hugs,
MM
