A Deep Cry 52


"Itachi-san! I can't locate Sasuke! I lost the signal! It's not there!"

"What do you mean by that?"

"The signal has been dead since yesterday! I've been trying all day but I just can't locate him!"

With a voice filled with worry and anxiety, he asked, "Where did you lost him?"

"The last signal I was able to capture was around the university. Then the signal just disappeared and never came back! That's unusual! Normally, I'd be able to capture something from to time but now it's just… dead!"

"Are you sure this isn't an equipment error?"

"No! I check everything! I even installed new gears! He's gone! I'm trying to track his phone too but I just can't locate it!"

His heart pounded, his knees felt weak and his breaths got heavier, "What the hell is that supposed to mean, Anko-san?"

"Sasuke went out of his dorm room yesterday then left the university building. That's all I can tell… I'm afraid that… that he has never returned home…"

"Did you contact the university staff? Did you make sure that he's not there?"

"No, I didn't contact them yet…"

"Call them now and ask about him! He might still be there…. I'll try to find a way to get there as soon as possible!"

"Got it. I'll let you know if I find anything."

"Ok."

"Wait, Itachi-san. There is something else you need to know..."

"What now?" he said impatiently.

"Naruto has left the lands of fire… it's been two days since he left."

"He left? Is he going to Sasuke too? Does he know about this?"

"No! I told only you. I don't know why he left. He just did…"

"Do you know where is he right now?"

"Not really. I'm not tracking him but I think he's going to Sasuke so… if I'm not mistaken then he should be on his way to the land of Iron."


"He's going to Sasuke…? So he couldn't take it in the end… I can understand…"


"Itachi-san?"

"Call me if you find anything."

"Okay."

Itachi was stuck with Madara and Obito, the ghoul hunter. After that disturbing call, Itachi had to somehow go find his brother, for he had all kinds of ominous thoughts attacking his worried heart, making him lose his calmness.

"What's with the worried look, Itachi?" Madara asked.

"Something bad came up…"

"What is it?" Obito asked.

"It's probably nothing… but… I have a bad feeling about all of this..."

"What is it? Is Konoha okay?" Madara insisted.

"It's… it's Sasuke…"

Madara smirked, pinched his chin and eyed Obito,

"See! I told you he still cares about his little brother. That's why we can trust that he'll behave himself."

Obito nodded, "So what happened to the little Uchiha?"

Itachi, grabbing his forehead in his worries, mumbled, "He's missing…"

"Oh? Did he run away from home or something?" Obito chuckled.

Both Itachi and Madara didn't smile. The look on Itachi's face made it clear to Madara that this wasn't a laughing matter. He sealed his lips and frowned, waiting for a response for Itachi, who shifted his gaze to the side and said,

"I have to leave... I'm only telling you this so you'd understand why I'm leaving."

"I see… but you belong to us now. You can't just leave. The only reason we didn't kill you is because we can keep a close eye on you. If you're leaving then we'll have no choice but to end your life, Itachi." Said Obito.

His worried heart made him completely lose his calmness and forgot all about his contract with those two hunters; the contract he made just to save his little brother. In a loud voice, a pair of widely opened eyes and a serious tone he yelled,

"You don't understand, do you? I'm not asking! I'm telling you that I'm leaving! I don't care what you'll make of it! I have to leave and I will!"

Before Obito say anything back, Madara stepped in, "… I understand… it's your little brother. One must protect one's brothers..." He added, "But, Itachi, you're a ghoul... and we are ghoul hunters. We can't let you go that easy. That's not how we do things here."

"I can't be trusted? Is that it?"

"Well… it's our duty to capture your kind. We let you live because you were aiding us. If you stop doing so, then we'll have no other choice but to kill you." Madara said.

Itachi lowered his worried eyes and said, "I'm not deserting you. I just need some time off. Would that work?"

"How naïve of you… to think something like that would work on us." Obito said.

Itachi, losing his patience, "I must go and I will go. You two are free to think whatever you want… but I'll give you my word, I'm not leaving you! You helped me save my brother's life. I will never forget that. I owe you for it. That's all I have to say."

Not caring about what could happen to him, Itachi turned his back and walked away without a hint of fear or hesitation in his steps for he had a good reason to threw his life away again.

The two hunters traded a look then stared at Itachi's back with doubtful eyes, wavering hearts and busy minds.

Obito spoke mockingly in a loud voice for Itachi to hear him, "What if your worries were true and your brother was really kidnaped…? How do you plan to go about this? Attack from both sides?"

In a deep voice, Madara said, "Let him go find his brother. One must protect his siblings."

Obito blinked, "What? You're letting him go that easily?"

"It's his only brother… Let him go."

"So what? He's still a ghoul!"

"Do you have any siblings, Obito?"

"… No…"

"Then you won't understand."

"But...Still…! He's…!"

Madara said angrily, "He's going to protect a human, Obito! That's the same thing we're doing, isn't it! Let him go!"

Obito blinked then argued, "Wha… what's wrong with you!? They all say the same thing! They all claim that they're protecting humans! Why is he an exception?"

"Because he went against his own kind for the humans! He fought with us and lost a dear friend for the humans! He has the same purpose that we have! He threw his life for his brother's sake! And he's willing to throw what's left of his miserable life for his brother's sake!" His tone got louder, "That is real! That is what we are doing! That is the reason we fight for! He's showing us what a real warrior is like! He deserves respect!"

"…."

Obito lowered his eyes and sealed his lips while Madara turned his back and remained quite.

Obito murmured, "Then we should join him…"

Madara turned his head and looked at Obito in a surprise when he noticed the sudden shift in his manner.

Obito added, "If he's going to fight ghouls or whatever then we must go with him. That's our duty too, right?"

Madara remained quite for a moment then nodded, "We'll watch from a distance. We still don't know for sure."

"I see… I'm good with that."


A Deep Cry


In Orochimaru's hideout,

"How is our little boy doing, Kabuto?"

"Still asleep, but I think he's going to wake up soon. He's been having this nightmare for a while now. It's about time he wakes up to the real nightmare."

"I wonder what's he's dreaming about? I wish I could see what he really fears." Orochimaru smirked while leaning forward toward the glass that was separating them from Sasuke, who was sleeping in side the closed room.

Kabuto stared at Orochimaru with anxious eyes then continued, "E… Everything went back to normal except his body temperature. He still has a little fever… but in general, his body is responding positively to 'the treatment'."

"I knew it. I know this kid is perfect. As for the fever, that's normal. Once his body adjust to my blood he won't get sick that easily."

He fixed his glasses nervously and asked, "What do you plan to do with him, Orochimaru-sama? I thought you wanted him to just stay alive… however, you went and attack him… why?"

"I wasn't planning on causing him so much pain yet. But he provoked me. Also, he had this chip that was embedded into his body. I needed to get rid of that…"

"A chip? What kind of chips?"

"I crushed it already. It's a tracking chip. That must be Itachi's doing… which makes me wonder, how come he's not here yet? I'm sure those hunters are keeping a close eye on him. That's the only explanations of why he's not here yet… Unlucky, Itachi. "

"Y… You said, Sasuke provoked you… I don't know what does that mean…?"

"He made me feel the joy of pain, that's what it means. I haven't felt such joy since Kimimaro."

"Kimimaro? The boy who helped the test subject "Jugo" escape. You were so found of him…"

"I was interested in his skills and abilities. But now… I found someone who could surpass him. This kid has great potential. I saw it in his eyes, moves and words. All he needs is some preparation and he'll be perfect."

"Are you planning on using him in the reanimation project?"

"Bingo. But not the way he is. I need to break him first, turn him into a real monster, then…" his evil smile made Kabuto's heartbeats increase and his lips trembled. He lowered his head and listened to his master plan in both fear and worry. Even though he was that man's right hand, he was still not really used to his methods and would repeatedly hesitate at executing his plans, especially when the test subject is just a kid.

Orochimaru continued in the same nasty tone, "Then the moment of true love will come and give me two angry beasts that I can use to rule this world."

Kabuto's heart skipped a beat as he quivered,


"This is horrible! By breaking him… he means totally destroying him…"


His eyes shifted to the sleeping boy, that was struggling to break free from his nightmare, and shook in fear.


"What am I afraid of? Why am I scared? Is it because this plan seems like it's going to work? Why am I against that…?"


Noticing the deep fear and the hesitation his assistant was having he grim his face and mumbled in disappointment, "You're still soft, Kabuto…"

"I'm sorry… I'll work on that…"

"Humph…." He looked away and said, "We'll keep him locked until we find Naruto. Then… things will get better."

Before Orochimaru leaves, Kabuto asked in his worry, "Orochimaru-sama, you're forgetting about Uchiha Itachi! I'm sure he'll find a way to get here! He won't stop looking for his brother. We don't want to get in troubles with him."

"All the more reason to go faster with this plan. And if things get really bad then we can always trade our lives with his brother's life. Another reason for me to not turn this kid into a ghoul yet."

"But… but that's too risky…!"

"There is no going back now, Kabuto. What's done is done. Stop worrying so much! Just make sure he stays alive."

"As you wish, Orochimaru-sama..."

Kabuto was standing in front of a large panel that enabled him to control Sasuke's room temperature, brightness and humidity from outside. He was monitoring Sasuke's body condition by using those advanced sensors and devices they had installed in their unauthorized lab. He gazed from behind the glass intently at Sasuke, who was sleeping on the large medical table inside the sealed room with the tempered glass walls surrounding him. His chest, arms and legs were tied up to the table and he had no shirt on. There were tubes connected to his chest, arms and forehead continuously measuring several vital parameters including his blood pressure and his heart rate and his body temperature.


"Why did it have to go like this? Uchiha Sasuke… and… Uzumaki Naruto… This is going to be hard to watch even for me…

What Orochimaru-sama has in mind is… dreadful… You two will become his… deadly weapons…"


A Deep Cry


In a dark place where there was no light but the light that surrounded his brother's image, he called in a surprise, "Nii-san?"

"Sasuke." Itachi's voice echoed.

"You're alive!"

Itachi smiled beautifully.

Sasuke smiled back and almost cried, "I know you were there watching over me, Nii-san!"

"I'm always watching over you, remember?"

"The moon! I watched the moon!"

"You love the moon."

"I do!"

"Come, Sasuke. Come watch the moon with me!"

Sasuke grinned and rushed toward his brother who poked his forehead the moment he got closer and murmured with a smile, "Forgive me, Sasuke. Maybe next time."

Itachi floated in the air like a sprite while Sasuke watches him closely. His eyes dropped tears and his heart pounded, "Itachi…!" he murmured with frightened heart.

Itachi mumbled, "Do you want to see the moon, Sasuke?"

Sasuke gazed at his brother with eyes full of wonder, fear, worry and pain as his brother fly away higher and higher, "Don't go…!" he muttered.

"Let's go to the moon…" Itachi smiled.

"Don't…. don't leave me alone…!" he muttered in the same low, shaky voice.

Itachi seemed to fade away in the air gradually right before Sasuke's lost eyes,

"Nii-san!" he called in crying voice.

Itachi mouthed something that Sasuke couldn't hear. Watching Itachi's image started fading little by little, Sasuke's fingers twitched. He reached out desperately and called painfully, "No! Wait! Stop! Don't leave!"

But Itachi never stopped fading. That image he wished so much to embrace disappeared slowly right before his dark eyes, leaving him in that dark, empty space alone with no light to chase after and no hope to cling on to.

In the cold darkness, he cried, "NII-SAAAN!"

But the voice that answered his calls wasn't his brothers. It was a female voice,

"You're finally awake!"

He opened his eyes in a shock, gasping loudly, sweating heavily, gazing around frightfully searching for a hint of reality,

"Wha… wha…" he mumbled with faded voice.

Sweating, quavering, mumbling no sense, shaking, struggling to free his body, his consciousness slowly woke up to reality.

He was placed on a white table in a medical room and was tied to that table so he won't move. In his fear, worry, shock and confusing, he scanned the room with his widely opened eyes searching for answers.

"It's okay. You're still alive." The same female voice murmured to him.

He shifted his head to the left side, where the voice came from, and found a woman tied to a table just like him by his side. But unlike him, the woman was smiling.

"Calm down. It's just a bad dream." She said.

With his dark eyes fixed at her, still shaken, he asked, "Who… who are you? Why am I in a hospital?"

"I'm sorry but you're not in a hospital. You're in a laboratory."

"A laboratory?" he frowned.

"You're Orochimaru's new toy, Sasuke."

"What are you talking about? Who are you?"

"They call me 'clone'. I'm Anko's clone."

"A… clone?" he mumbled in confusion.

Anko's clone smiled, "Yes. I was created here in this lab."

"I don't understand…?"

"It's too much to take. I know. I don't blame you."

"You… you look human to me…"

"But I'm not a human. Technically, I'm a ghoul."

"A what?" he shifted his eyes away and mumbled to himself, "Have I gone crazy? What's going on? What's happening to me? Why can't I wake up?"

"You're not asleep... and you're not crazy…"

"Stop!" he said with closed eyes.

"I'm sorry... You look like a good human…"

He kept his eyes shut and his teeth clenched and wished from the depth of his heart to wake up and find himself in his own bed but that never happened.

"It's Orochimaru's fault you're here… that freak enjoy toying with humans…"

Realizing that his wish will never be granted, he opened his tired eyes and asked without looking at Anko's clone,

"Whom are you talking about? Who is that?"

"The freak who captured you. Ugly face, yellow eyes, long tongue, while skin, disgusting being…"

"Hebe?"

"Hebe? Yeah he's like a snake. He loves snakes."

With raised his eyebrow he said, "That guy bit me! He attacked me and we had a sword fight! Then he just bit me… and… I don't remember what happened next…"

"He bit you? Yeah, that's like him. That's Orochimaru. He must found you interesting or something to bring you here."

"…"

Amidst the confusion, he asked, "For how long was I Asleep, Anko?"

"Anko!" her eyes shined and her mouth drew a real smile.

With a slightly bent eyebrows, parted lips, and a gaze full of wonder, he asked, "… that's your name, right?"

"YES! Yes, that's my name! You're the second human to call me by my name!"

"…..."

"Oh, you look surprised. I'm sorry I'm overreacting. It's just that I missed being called with me name. They always call me 'clone' or use my code …"

"A code?"

"Yes, I'm number 7, clone number 7. But I'm a failed project…"

Lost, confused, surprised, not sure if this was a dream or not, the Uchiha boy asked with uncertain heart, "What do you mean by "a failed project"?"

"Before I answer you let me ask you something, Sasuke. Do you believe in supernatural beings?"

His heart skipped a beat, his eyes widened, his lips parted, he unwillingly gasped. The shiver that run down his spin hurt a little that he wanted to grab his chest but couldn't because of the ties.

"W… what do you know? Tell me." He said eagerly, asking for he grim details that were kept hidden from him all these years.

"Ghouls, reanimation, sprites? Do you think those exist?"

He swallowed then said, "I… know they exist..."

"I see. That's odd. Only few humans believe those exists. That's what I hear. I don't really interact with the outside world."

"So you're locked in here?"

"Yes. I'm just a tool. My purpose is to heal you."

"Heal me!?" he frowned.

"You see those tubes? They're connecting our bodies. Your wounds healed because of my blood, which is still being transferred into your body through those tubes."

He shifted his shocked eyes to check the tubes ends only to see the truth with his own eyes, "How!? How is that possible!? What are you!?"

"I'm a ghoul. A clone of a ghoul actually."

She glanced at the shocked boy's face, smile then continued, "It's okay. You will get use to hearing those things now that you're here."

"How is this possible? You said your blood is healed my wounds… how is that possible?"

"Ghoul's blood can heal a human body. That's one of the facts Orochimaru and Kabuto want to prove. They ran so many test on you while you were sleeping and you responded positively."

"…!"

"I'm sorry…" she suddenly said.

"For what?"

"Because I can guess what might happen to you next but I won't tell you."

"… I don't think that's going to change anything… I wouldn't know what's going to happen to me next anyways…"

"You're a good human… You don't deserve to be here…"

"I don't even know why I'm here…"

"I can see it." She looked away and murmured in a painful voice, "You remained me of her…"

Before he says another word, the lab door opened up and Orochimaru walked in with a smirk on his face, "I see you've bonded already? How nice."

"You!" Sasuke clenched his teeth angrily.

"Look at that glare. It's real. That's the kind of glares I want to see pointed at me."

"What do you want from me? Why am I here?" he yelled.

"I will show you instead of telling you why you're here."

In her fear, Anko's clone mumbled in a wavering voice as she watched him get closer to Sasuke, "It's going to hurt like hell! But you will heal once you feed and it will get better! I promise! I promise!"


"What is she talking about? What is he planning to do with me? This… this mincing air… I… I can't move…!"


Once Orochimaru took the final step closer to Sasuke, the clone screamed crazily, "No! NOOOOO! NOOO! It hurts! It hurts! Go away! Go away!"

In his anxiety, he wondered why she was screaming when no one was touching her. Her screams added to his fear and confusing that he wanted her to just stop and let his deal with whatever was coming without her screams ringing in his ears.

Orochimaru leaned over Sasuke, touched his ears with his lips and whispered, "Safe word is 'Please'."

"Wh—

At the blink of an eyes, Sasuke found himself struggling with a deep throbbing pain that ran from his right hand through his right hand then his right shoulder, neck and finally his chest and from there spread through all of his body that he couldn't hold himself from screaming.

In his horrible pain, deep gasps, tears and cries, he finally realized that his right hand was smashed, all of his fingers were crushed and he couldn't move, think or even speak. What he managed to do was screaming horribly and gasping loudly.

Anko's screaming increased when she saw Sasuke struggling with his pain for she knew exactly how that feels. She looked away and cried,

"Please! Please! Please! PLEASE!"

"M… m… monster…" Sasuke mumbled in his pain.

"'Please'. That's the safe word. When you say it, I'll feed you some of my blood and your hand will heal instantly. All you have to say is, 'please'."

A stinging pain that he has never felt before took over his body and mind. He lost the ability to think or speak as he was losing his consciousness in his struggle to endure the unbearable pain. His vision blurred and his eyes half opened as he gasped of air.

"Let me just die… I can't take it… I can't…"

"Please, say please and I'll save you." Orochimaru said while grabbing the boy's chin.

Anko's screams never stopped. They were piercing Sasuke's ears making it hard to ignore them.

"P…. p… ple… please…" he murmured and before Orochimaru enjoys the thrill of being begged for mercy, the proud Uchiha continued, "Just… let… me… die…"

It was like a slap on the face for the arrogant ghoul, "To refuse my blood! You pathetic human! Who do you think you are?!" He roared but the kid didn't ask again, instead he closed his eyes and fought to swallow his screams.

In his anger, Orochimaru cut his own wrist and pushed it in Sasuke's mouth but the proud Uchiha tried to turn his head away hopelessly so he won't drink from Orochimaru's blood. It was his unfair fate that made him swallow those drops of that fouled blood that kept falling into his mouth and sliding into his throat.


"It tastes awful… I don't want this… I don't want his blood in my body… Why are you letting him do this to me… Naruto? Itachi?"


The tears that washed his face as he swallows the fouled blood carried his shame, pain and sorrow. He was ashamed for not being able to reject that blood. That was what made him break into tears.

"See, easy. Now you're feeling better. It's all you needed." Orochimaru said, "That useless clone's blood can't heal this level of injuries. Only mine can heal those. That's why you must learn to say 'please'."

His half opened eyes were fixed at the ceiling, crying tears of shame while he felt his hand recovering almost instantly. It was like magic that he couldn't tell if that was real, if he was awake, if this was really happening…


"How clueless am I? Those unusual events… Am I crazy? Have I lost my mind?

When? When did it happen?

Will I ever heal…? Will I go back to being normal…?

I… I'm scared…

Naruto… I'm so scare…"


To Be Continued