Drops of water from the leaking shower-head fell into my waiting mouth, one after another. It didn't exactly quench my thirst. But at least, for a brief moment, my cracked lips got a sense of relief. My head tilted to the side, and I let the falling droplets roll across patches of green and purple skin.

It had been about six months, as far as I could tell from the changing seasons, since the incident. As a consequence of my disobedience, The Master deemed me an escape threat. I lost bathroom privacy privileges for no other reason than his desire to humiliate and control me. Whenever I felt the urge to go, I had to inform The Master, who forced me to wait while he finished whatever he was doing before escorting me to the bathroom where he would watch as I did my business. This little game of his horrified me for the first few weeks, especially where the shower was concerned. After that, I completely lost any sense of dignity or personal boundaries.

He installed a second deadbolt on the front door that only could only be locked and unlocked from the outside, and he made me and Haru assist him. He severely limited my food intake to a small bowl of some godawful meat-soup and a few pieces of bread every other day, with a fruit (usually and apple) on alternating days. Takao and Masato continued to sneak me food when I moved the shipments. But the shipments stopped arriving several weeks ago, and I haven't left the Master's house since. My weight inevitably plummeted to the point where I could hardly stand to look at my own reflection – Shou's sunken eyes and hollow expression haunted me.

The Master's fist thundered against the door. I kneeled on my mattress and bowed before he could even get the key in. The door swung open. Haru stumbled into the room and fell onto his own mattress like a rag-doll. The Master advanced on him like freight train and brandished the baton, cornering the boy.

The blows came without warning. Haru wrapped his arms around his head as the crushing force of the baton bore down on him. A stifled cry escaped his throat. I closed my eyes and buried my head in my arms.

"What did I tell you?" The Master. He was too calm. No human could do that to a child and still be so fucking calm. No human could allow that to happen to a child and still be so fucking calm. But you did.

My finger tips tore into my skin.

Another blow. It sounded like a punch. "What did I tell you?" he repeated.

"I-I'm … s-sorry M-mas-"

Punch. Haru landed with a thud on the ground.

"Clearly, you're not, because you keep fucking doing it."

Haru whimpered. Another thud, this time against the wall behind me.

"If you steal any more of my food, I'm going to let you starve to death. Understand?"

I could hear Haru struggling for breath, but no response.

"I'm limiting your food, as punishment."

The Master released him, finally, and I heard him fall to a heap on the ground, quietly sobbing.

The baton rapped on my shoulder, grabbing my attention. "Up, on your knees," the Master commanded. "Hands behind your back."

I did. My body tensed to prepare for a blow.

"Close your eyes."

I swallowed hard, but did as he asked.

"Open your mouth."

What? My jaw clenched shut and started to shake.

"Open," he said again as the baton crashed against my ribs.

My jaw and body fall slack at the command. The hard wood caressed my lips, and warm liquid coated them. It was thick and smelled of sulfur. It tasted like blood.

"Suck it."

My mouth closed over the bloodied baton, and my tongue ran along it. Shou's body moved automatically as I watched from the inside. Even as he pushed the baton and Shou began to gag, I felt nothing. This wasn't real.

Without a word, the Master left.

We stayed frozen in our places and waited for the second clang of the hidden door. It finally came, and I breathed a sigh of relief. As my eyes opened, I saw the desolate room, and the beaten child, and I tasted his blood. My stomach rolled.

Haru wrapped his arms tightly around himself, his body trembling. I sat by him and began to examine his wounds. But he grabbed my prodding hand and laid me down. His small body buried into my side as he draped my arm around his shoulder.

I exhaled slowly. "We can't keep doing this."

Finger clutched my shirt, but his face remained emotionless. "Doing what?"

"We can't keep pretending this isn't happening."

"Why not? Thinking about it isn't going to change anything."

"But we-"

"I just need to forget for awhile. Please?"

I could see tears blooming in his vacant stare. They rolled down his dark red cheek, which would be black by morning. "Where did I leave off?"

A small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. "You stopped Doto's henchmen from capturing the princess." He rested his head on my shoulder as he buried his arms between us in an attempt to keep them warm.

"Ah, yes. Well … Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke, and I held the goons back. We managed to escape off the island and headed for the Land of Snow. We had no other choice, but the princess was terrified of returning, knowing Doto was waiting for her there. She disappeared from her private bus and ran through the trees, trying to escape the Land of Snow."

"Did you find her?"

"Naruto did. He carried her on his back all the way through the forest. But when they came to a tunnel, a train blasted through the rocks and rushed toward them."

Haru's eyes went wide. "Did they make it out?"

I nodded. "Naruto sprinted the whole way. He reached the opening and leaped out of the trains path just in the nick of time …"

Every night, I told him stories about my missions, students, and Konoha. He knew everyone's name by heart, and he could give me detailed descriptions of the village, though he never saw it with his own eyes. He dreamed about the village. It became a fairytale to him.

"But Doto was one step ahead of us. He had a weapon which shot thousands of kunai, and he used it to stop the bodyguards and capture the princess."

"That bastard!" He sat up and focused on me. "What'd you do? You saved her, right?"

"Patience. I don't want to spoil the ending."

"Tell me, please?" he pouted.

I smiled. "Doto's goons hauled the princess onto a blimp. But, just as they were about to flee, Naruto managed to grab onto the blimp …"

A smile spread across his face, and he covered it with his hand.

"… Naruto fought the goons, trying to get the princess to escape with him. But Nadare got the upper hand. He put a chakra-draining device on Naruto, and Doto threw both him and the princess in the prison."

"Did they get the crystal necklace?"

I shook my head. "When the princess was asleep, I switched the necklace with a copy-"

"But what about Naruto and the princess?"

My arm went around his shoulders again, and he rested against my side. I told him about Naruto's daring escape, how he and Sasuke defeated Doto, and how Koyuki reclaimed her rightful place as princess of the Land of Snow. And I promised to take him to see one of her movies.

He closed his eyes and finally drifted into sleep.

My arm stretched to the side, and a wave of relief washed over me when I touched only air. I stared at the dim light in the ceiling and waited for morning.

This was routine.

"I'm going on a rather long trip," the absolute controller of my universe stated. "I won't be back until late tomorrow morning. I expect all chores to be done as if I was here. Understand?"

"Yes, Master," we recited with a perfect melancholy harmony.

"There's one meal for each of you on the second shelf of the refrigerator. I made note of every bit of food in this house. If any of it is missing, both of you go without food for a week. Understand?"

"Yes, Master."

With that, he disappeared through the doorway. The sound of keys rattling in the locks marked the beginning of a joyous occasion. A whole night without the torment we endured und- The sound stopped abruptly.

"Sho-"

"Shh. Wait."

The soft tap of footsteps began to recede.

"What is it?" Haru asked, his eyes full of concern.

I waited. This can't be real. This is some fucking game of his. "He forgot to lock the top lock."

Haru joined me in watching the door. We both ran to the window to see if he was really gone, certain he was going to forget his mistake and come back. But he never did.

"He probably locked the top lock and forgot the bottom," Haru said.

"He definitely locked the bottom," I replied as I rushed to his study to find the senbon.

"Master told you not to go in there!" Haru stood in the doorway and glared at me as I rummaged through the drawers. "What if you're wrong? What if we're still stuck in here and he sees that we were in his study?"

"I'll put it back. It can't hurt to try." My hand reached into the drawer, and I quickly drew it back when I felt a sharp prick on my finger. I peered in. Senbon. And blood. A small droplet had spread in a neat circle on one of the Master's documents.

"What is it?" Haru asked, his face read concern.

I licked the tip of my finger and shut the drawer. "Nothing. I found the senbon."

The senbon slipped easily into the key hole and raked across the tumblers. I listened as they fell into place.

"Shou?"

I twisted the senbon. The door unlocked with a click.

My eyes fixated on the doorknob. I wanted so badly to be free, but at the same time feared that, if I turned the handle, nothing would happen. That I'd be trapped here. The bloodstain. My fingers wrapped around the metal orb. If he finds it, he's going to kill you.

Bright light bathed the walls, the floor, Haru, me. I pushed the door all the way open and simply gazed longingly at the trees.

"Shou?"

"Come on, let's go."

"No."

My head turned abruptly toward the boy. His face was blank, but his hands we shaking. I took a step toward him. "What do you mean?"

He closed his eyes. "I-I'm sorry. I c-can't."

My hands held his shoulders. I lifted his chin to meet his gaze. "Haru, we can do this. Okay? Just …"

He shook his head. His gaze returned to the ground.

"Haru, please." I tried to speak softly, but the urgency in my voice was all too apparent. "This may be our only chance to escape."

"No!" He threw my hands away and grabbed the cleaning supplies out of the closet.

"Haru, what are you doing?" I put my hand on his shoulder again.

He shook it off. A layer of cleaning spray rained on the shelves, and his rag swept over every inch with frantic speed. "Master wants the chores done," he stated.

"Haru, listen," my hand rested on his shoulder once again, and he slapped it away. I swallowed. "Haru, we can't stay here anymore. We can't live like this-"

"We don't have a choice. Master told us not to leave."

"He isn't expecting us to try to run this time. We can make it if we try … We can stay in Konoha."

"No."

"Haru, if we just make it to Konoha, they'll take us in and protect us. I prom-" You don't know that. Stop lying to him.

"No, they won't. Master will find us." He moved to another shelf and began dusting.

"They will. And they'll stop Master from ever doing this again-"

"Shut up! It isn't real! Just … Shut up."

My mouth hung speechless as I watched the child feverishly scrub the glass surfaces. "Haru …"

His hands covered his ears. "No. It's just a story. Don't make me believe that I can live like that again. It hurts too much."

"I …" What was I supposed to say?

"Just, please stop." He wiped tears away from his cheeks. "We have to clean before Master gets back. You should put those back."

I glanced at the senbon in my hand. The bloodstain, you fucking fool. "I … I have to go. I'm sorry."

His eyes were on mine, pleading. Disbelieving. His eyebrows furrowed together in a scowl.

"I'll come back for you. I promise."

He turned away from me and continued cleaning. "No you won't. Just go."

A wave of guilt washed over me, suffocated me. I tore my gaze away from the child and finally walked away, one step after another, until I was gone.

Two more chapters until Part III, the "comfort" part.

Thank you readers and reviewers. Stay classy. :)