The Akatsuki, 5 years ago...

I felt a cold, concrete-hard surface under me as I woke up, aware of a trembling pain in my head, and I wasn't entirely sure about where I was or what happened…

"I say he'd make a good offering to Lord Jashin. You gotta give him over to me." I heard the voice of a man, kind of mirthy, and for some reason I was more mad than scared.

"You're crazy. He's a jinchuuriki and we need the nine tails. Shut up on your crazy plans you idiot." Another man replied to him in a more sullen way.

I didn't know if I could fight these people, I was still just 8 and even though I was the genin of the year, I'd still managed to get kidnapped which put me to shame.

Kuraaama: Yo, idiot. What are you going to do now? Not that I particularly care.

'This not a high time for speaking to me, Kyubi.' I rebutted as I frowned as I slowly stood up, because I really wanted to look my foes in the eyes.

What I saw was an obscure cave and several men wearing black cloaks with red clouds on them.I clenched my teeth.

"Opp, he's awake." One of them, wearing an orange mask said, in a stupid voice.I looked at them with clenched teeth and fists.

"What are you doing you all funny looking baa-chans?" I called out to them loudly and I heard Kurama laugh.

Kurama: I wouldn't lend you an ounce of my strength if you didn't know how to control my chakra.

"Fight me!"

"You wish to fight back, kid?"

"You should be aware all of us here are S-ranking missing nin." A red eyed guy came forward.

He had black, lanky hair tied in a ponytail and two long strange lines traversing the sides of his face.

Well, I was one to talk. I had whisker lines.

The young man was wearing nail polish, just like all of them, and I found it funny.

Why the hell would they be wearing nail polish?

By the way the red eyed guy looked I guessed he was probably an Uchiha like Sasuke and that was probably the Sharingan.

I didn't expect it when he appeared in front of me with an incredible speed, grabbing my collar.

He narrowed his Sharingan at me and I clenched my teeth."You'd better watch your tongue around here."

He then whispered to me as though he didn't want the others to hear.

I wouldn't have believed then that this Konoha missing traitor was on my side…

I looked straight into his eyes at first, and I guess I was lucky to not have been put under a genjutsu...yet.

"I'd heard the jinchuuriki's awake." Another man joined the circle of baa-chans.

This one had carrot hair and his face was full of piercings.

"Ha ha ha ha, carrot top ojisan!" I laughed at the top of my voice earning a lot of dangerous looks.

But I didn't care for formalities.

It was clear to me that I was these guys' hostage and it was either fight or flight.

"Is he really this dumb? I'd have expected more from a jinchuuriki from the Leaf, Itachi." The carrot man told the red eyed man.

My eyes flew to Itachi in an instant.

So this guy was indeed Itachi Uchiha, the guy who assassinated Sasuke's entire family.

"You traitor! How dare you do that to your own little brother?" I'd started shouting to Itachi with an accusing finger.

"I will kill you!"

I made a clone.

I've only started learning Rasengan as these guys kidnapped me in the middle of my training.

Itachi Uchiha narrowed his eyes at me and the Sharingan pattern suddenly changed.

"We don't have time for this."

The carrot man started saying but before he could do anything, Itachi fixated me and my clone vanished.

Itachi grabbed my face and looked straight into my eyes."You're so weak."

He said.

"Just like my foolish otouto."

And before I knew it his sharingan pattern had changed and I was under his genjutsu and he used the still unknown to me Demonic Illusion technique, or Tsukuyomi, and I found myself strapped to a cross, naked.

"You're so weak, you're so weak, you're so weak, you're so weak." Itachi's voice rang in my head while a lot of his clones were running swords through me.

I was in so much pain.

"I'll be doing this to you for the next 24 hours." He announced.

That pain...that demonic power to inflict so much pain that felt so real, though it was a genjutsu...was a mystery to me.

"It always fascinates me to see you using that power, Itachi." I'd heard a man's surly voice from far away, through my screams.

After the 1 minute that felt like 24 hours to me, I fell unconscious.

Kurama: he's right you know. You truly are weak.

The great fox laughed at me from behind the bars of his cage.

I clenched my teeth at him while I was laying down in front of his cage.

"Shut up and let me sleep. I was supposed to be unconscious." I closed my eyes mournfully.

I was trapped inside of my unconsciousness but Kurama was there to keep me awake somehow.

Kurama: As long as you have me inside, you'll never be fully unconscious, but not fully conscious either.

"That's crap." I said.

I kept my eyes closed while I was trying to get some rest.

Then, I don't know why exactly my hands glided down and I reached out my belly and touched the seal which my father put in place.

Indeed, I could control the nine tails' chakra now.

"You know." I smiled up at the big fox that made my life so difficult. "One day I'll go after that hate inside of you too." I told Kurama and then my mind went to black.

...

I woke up next in a cot somewhere, in a shabby room.

It was dark, dim lighted only by a candle, and my head hurt terribly.

I don't know what gave me away but I heard Itachi say:

"It seems you're awake."

He came towards me with a blank expression and I tried my best to sit up in the light of the bingo book assassin.

I didn't expect it at all when he came around, handing me a mug of water.

I didn't trust him and after remembering that he mind-fucked me with his Sharingan, I feared him too.

"There's no way I'm drinking anything you're going to give to me!" I jumped up on the bed, feeling for my shuriken and kunai.

He took them away!

I produced a clone.

Itachi, meanwhile, was shaking his head, still standing there like a ghost.

All Uchihas are so darn creepy.

"I wouldn't have had to do that if you weren't going to try to attack us." He said, and I knew he was referring to the Tsukuyomi.

"Don't think I will just give in, especially when it comes to you!" I wanted to do a Rasengan, a jutsu I still had trouble with, but Itachi grabbed my hand.

"Calm down. You're still too weak to fight us." Itachi said.

"Furthermore your body isn't stable. You've been unconscious for two days."

I was showing him my teeth.

"You really are like my foolish otouto. Actually, you're a bit more energetic."

"Sasuke is my friend and he hates you from the bottom of his heart!" I yelled at him.

Technically Sasuke wasn't my friend back then.

He was more like a rival.

When we saw each other we could only exchange glares and fists.We were both lonely, but he was the popular guy liked by everyone whom I couldn't easily approach.

He was good at everything.

"His hatred doesn't have anything to do with you." Itachi told me then, turning around and letting me go. "That's something I will take entirely upon myself."

I still wanted to fight the guy but he just walked away as if he wasn't interested in me at all and, before I could make a run for it, the door was locked.

I was not strong enough to save not even myself from the darkness.

... end of 1st chapter