This chapter marks this story to be the longest story I have posted! It is now officially longer than "Trust me" in word count.
Chapter 31
Bare your soul
day 5
Sachi did as Kiba asked and wrapped her arms around Akamaru's neck, keeping her head down and her body flush with the canine. She bit her tongue to stop the scream of displeasure from flying through the air once again muting all her senses.
She kept quiet as he commanded and soon heard Kiba shout out, "We got her!"
They didn't stop moving but she heard Hinata's voice acknowledge Kiba just before she began to hold off a few pursuers.
A few minutes later they stopped in a clearing.
"Alright, we're good now," Kiba said. Sachi let out a relieved breath and quickly put her feet back on solid ground. "Are you hurt at all?"
"No, I'm fine. What do we do now?"
"We wait for everyone to regroup."
"Who else came?" she asked.
"Shibi and Hinata apart from us and Shino," he answered. "I've never seen him so bent out of shape before. He's got it bad," he said through a smile.
Sachi shook slightly and began to cry. She stifled her sobs in her hands. Far too many emotions began to hit her at the same time, she was relieved to be free but at the same time she was so grief-stricken knowing Kai-chan was dead.
Kiba wasn't sure what to do. He was more accustomed to handling fainting episodes, having dealt with Hinata for years. But he never had much experience dealing with crying women.
"Whoa, uh, hey, hey," he said nervously. "You're alright."
Akamaru shoved his massive head under her arm, seeming to do a better job of comforting the upset redhead than his master.
"Thank you," she said in sincere relief. "Thank you for getting me out of there. I was so scared-" She jumped as she stopped speaking and an instant later Kiba heard the same thing.
"Someone's coming," she whispered harshly. Kiba and Akamaru stood ready to protect her. But they quickly relaxed when they saw and smelled the rest of the team enter the clearing.
"It's alright. It's just the others." Kiba said to assure the blind woman that there was no danger.
While Hinata and Shibi stopped when they entered the clearing, Shino quickly made his way to Sachi, her name whispered upon his lips in what could only be called rapture.
Upon hearing his voice, Sachi quickly helped to eat up the remaining distance between them.
In a rare moment of public affection, Shino pulled her to him tightly, ecstatic to finally know she was safe. Sachi continued to shake and sniffle lightly against his chest.
He pulled her face back, examining her visage as he turned her head left and right. He let a few dozen kikai loose to examine her for injuries.
"I'm fine, Shino-kun," she responded to his worry, not even flinching at the kikai crawling across her skin. He was not satisfied with her words. He glared harshly at the bite mark that sullied her pale neck. His kikai assured him there was no internal damage and only one abnormality. He rolled up her sleeves to see the numerous bug bites dotting her skin.
"It's nothing. They didn't hurt me. I'm fine, really," she said trying desperately to calm him down. He finally seemed more assured and withdrew his kikai.
"It's over," he said, "we dealt with them. Are you ready to travel?"
"Well, wait. What happened to Kimiko-chan?" Sachi asked.
"Who?" Kiba asked.
"Kimiko-chan was kidnapped just like me. Did you see her?"
"Everyone we encountered fought until death," Shibi added.
"But Kimiko-chan wouldn't have fought!" Sachi declared adamantly. "I swear she wouldn't have. We have to go back for her."
They had agreed and quickly made it back to the Kamizuru's family home.
"Kimiko-chan!" Sachi shouted walking the familiar paths through the gardens to the house. "Where is she?"
Hinata activated her byakugan and searched the compound. "There is someone in the last room down the hall."
Sachi hastened down the hall towards what she knew as Kimiko's bedroom. She slid the door open and called for Kimiko again.
"Sachi-chan?" the voice questioned in a quavering tone. Kimiko rushed to the redhead and clung to her for support. "They're all dead!" she cried. "Hiro and the others they're dead! What do we-" Kimiko screamed as the others made it to the doorway and pulled Sachi with her away from the door. "It's them!"
"Kimiko-chan!" Sachi shouted. Kimiko screamed again.
"Please, please don't hurt us!"
"Kimiko!" Sachi shouted again as she grabbed the girl. "They're my friends. They won't hurt us."
"They killed everyone, Sachi-chan!" Kimiko shouted back in distress. "How can you say that?!"
"You have to trust me," she said gently. "It's alright. I promise." Though Kimiko's breathing was ragged and uneven she didn't protest. Sachi continued to whisper consoling words to the woman until she was relatively calm. It took several moments but Sachi successfully brought her out from her hysterics.
"What Sachi-san said is correct," Shibi interrupted. "We are not here to hurt you. We will be able to return you to your home now. Where do you live?"
"Ishigakure," she whispered, still uneasy.
Shibi nodded and confirmed the time as midmorning by the position of the sun. "If we leave now we should be able to reach the town soon. This compound is not far from the village."
"It's about 20 minutes by foot," Kimiko supplied.
"It'll be faster if we carry you both," Kiba added.
"No!" Everyone looked at the redhead as she protested quickly. "Carrying us through the trees isn't gentle. It will shake Kimiko around too much all that bumping will hurt her baby." Sachi knew the implications behind the sharp breaths she heard around her and the subsequent silence that followed her statement. Kimiko still believed herself to be a willing participant in Hiro's actions and as long as she did Sachi wouldn't let more harm come to Kimiko and her baby. "We will have to walk her back home."
"We will leave in five minutes," Shibi said.
Kimiko had taken the time to pack a bag of her things and sling it over her shoulder before they left. Sachi had not been here long enough to be attached to any of the objects and hadn't bothered venturing to her room down the hallway.
Kimiko did not stray far from the redhead and Sachi stayed close for her comfort. The shinobi kept their distance from the young woman in the understanding that they wouldn't want to provoke her sense of well-being any more than they already had. When they ventured out of the bedroom just a few minutes later, arm in arm, Kimiko held onto Sachi painfully tight and made a retching noise. Sachi knew the reason. She could smell the tang of blood all around them and had been desperately trying to ignore it.
"Close your eyes, Kimiko-chan. Just hold onto me," Sachi whispered gently.
She did as she was told and allowed herself to be lead by Sachi as they followed Kiba and Akamaru along the path to the village.
"How can you do that?" she asked. "I thought you were blind?"
"I am. But I can hear Kiba-kun walking ahead of us to know where to follow and I can sense where the ground isn't level because Shino-kun taught me how to sense my surroundings with chakra."
"So, you really do trust them?" Kimiko shot a look over her shoulder at the pair of bespectacled Aburame, only now realizing they were out of eyeshot of the carnage they left behind.
"Of course I do. They're my friends and Shino-kun is my boyfriend."
Kimiko's head snapped around a second time to glance at the younger Aburame with a look of incredulity on her face. "Really? And he's... nice?" she asked with uncertainty.
"Yes, definitely. In fact," Sachi lowered her voice and cupped her hand to her mouth so only Kimiko could hear, "he's secretly a sweet guy at heart. When he knew I wanted to read a book that wasn't in braille he bought it and read it to me."
Kimiko awed at her story. Sachi went on to explain the finer points of chakra sensing and why she usually relied on insects until they reached the village.
Shibi had entered the Kage's office with Kimiko to inform them of her return and all that had transpired. When they emerged the women knew they would be saying their goodbyes.
"Promise you will write to me after you get settled in," Sachi requested.
"I will. Please stay safe and take care of yourself.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Is there anything I can do to help?" Sachi asked when they stopped to make camp. They had traveled for the rest of the day and now that night was upon them it was time for some well-needed rest.
"No," Shino answered with finality. "Just rest Sachi-chan."
"You have been through a lot," Hinata's sweet voice interjected. "You should just relax."
Hinata took her off into the woods for a bathroom break as the others started a fire and prepared food.
"Here." Hinata offered her a cup of tea when they returned. "It will help."
She clenched her shaking hands around the cup, muttered her thanks and drained it between breaths. Hinata was quick to refill it. She was still shaken from traveling through the air. No matter how long she had to endure the feeling it would not get better.
"How did you find me?" she asked after the second cup of tea.
"Kai-chan told me what happened just after you were taken," Shino said. "She was vital to our success."
Sachi sniffled and scratched the top of her head where Kai-chan should have been.
"What happened to her?" Shino asked, picking up on the insect's absence.
"She died. Hiro gave me a bee to replace her and it killed her just before Kiba found me. Did she lead you all the way to me? Or did you get my messages?"
"Messages?" Kiba stressed the plural. "There was more than one?"
"I had to make sure they got to you."
"How many?" Shino asked as he poured more boiling water into a cup and placed a metal spoon inside.
"Uh... a few dozen, I stopped counting after 2 dozen."
Shino sat down closer to her. He lifted her right arm and began rolling up the sleeve, revealing the many mosquito bites on her arm.
"What are you doing?" she asked curiously.
"Heat will help break down the enzymes from the bite that cause it to itch. This will be uncomfortable." He tapped the spoon to his finger ensuring it was not hot enough to burn and pressed it to one of the bites. Sachi jumped and let out an exaggerated sound of pain.
"I didn't think it would be that hot!"
"My apologies."
"Sachi-san," Shibi spoke for the first time since they made camp. "You will have to indulge my curiosity. Why were you on the street at such an hour when you were taken?"
"Well, I wasn't just out and about just because if that's what you are wondering. I was sleeping when Kai-chan woke me up. She told me I needed to run. So, I did."
"How did she tell you?" he pressed with an air of intrigue coloring his voice.
"Well she spoke to me," she said matter-of-factly. "She never did that before. Is that normal?"
Shibi let out a breath that she was sure was an indication that the man was amused. "I believe you have little to do where 'normal' is concerned."
"Gee, thanks, Shibi-san," she deadpanned.
"I believe what my father means is that no one without a hive has been able to communicate with the Kikai as you have. It is merely outside the parameters of 'normal'." Shino continued his work with the hot spoon. "Could you communicate with the other insects in the same way?"
"They didn't talk to me if that's what you mean. But if they got the message out then they must have understood me."
"So what does all this mean exactly?" Kiba asked with curiosity.
The three non-Aburame looked to the eldest member of the group.
"It simply means Sachi-san is more in tune with the insects than we have previously assumed," he answered. "You have a natural talent with them. Had you been born an Aburame I have no doubt you would be counted among the elite shinobi."
She remained quiet, taking in what she believed to be an immense compliment from the stoic man.
Dinner had ended their conversation. As night fell they called an end to their day. Shino offered to do the first watch as he was still working on Sachi's bites on her legs. He had taken a cup of the hot water over to a tree for her to relax against while he worked.
"I knew you would come for me. I didn't know you would be so quick."
"You should never have been taken in the first place," he bit out. His brow furrowed in anger and resentment. It eased slightly when her hand rested on his face, cupping his cheek in her soft hands.
"Shino-kun, there was nothing that could have been done. It wasn't as bad as you might expect. They didn't hurt me, they let me eat and have fresh clothes and entertainment. As far as kidnapping goes it was about as ideal as you could get."
"Stockholm syndrome," he stated, pressing the hot spoon to another bite by her knee.
"What?" she asked.
"Stockholm syndrome is where a hostage or captive develops positive feelings toward their captor. They mistake a lack of abuse for kindness and begin to identify and empathize with their captors. In extreme and long lasting cases the captive may not even try to escape thier captors when given the chance. Some merely accept their new life, forgoing any possibility of real freedom."
Sachi suddenly felt sick. She finally understood what Hiro meant. She thought he was just deluded and crazy, wanting to make her new life nice as if she was a guest and not being held against her will.
"Do you know why they wanted me?" she said in a quavering whisper. "They-they wanted me just to repopulate their clan. And what Hiro said-" She choked as tears spilled down her face, her voice becoming impossibly smaller. "He said he wouldn't have to force me. When the time came I would beg for it."
Shino lifted her into his lap and cradled her against his chest.
"I was so scared," she whined as her throat tightened. "I was so scared you wouldn't come in time."
His grip tightened around her and she was thankful for the security he brought.
"I'm sorry," he said with a voice full of remorse. "I'm sorry, Sachi-chan. This was all my fault."
"What do you mean?"
"He had been spying on us. I should have realized. I could have prevented this."
The weight of his guilt only intensified as he reflected on all the time the signs were not apparent to him. Whether it was a chakra signature hidden in the middle of Konoha or more likely a few of the Kamizuru's bee's following their movements. He, of all people, should have noticed. If he had Sachi would never have been in danger. His head dipped low.
Shino knew he was not one to forgive and let go of grudges and this was something he knew he would never forgive himself for.
"If you think for one second I care about that, you're wrong," Sachi said with remarkable reserve considering she was still crying. "Sometimes you can't stop something from happening. Hiro would have done anything to restore his clan. You couldn't have protected me forever. What matters is that you came for me. Don't blame yourself for what Hiro did."
He dropped his head to rest against hers. How could one person be so forgiving? Did she even know how to hate someone?
"They won't take you again Sachi-chan. Whatever needs to be done I will do it to make you feel safe again." He removed his outer jacket and pulled it around her to keep her warm in the night and sure that no one was awake to witness it, or not caring, he kissed her forehead gently.
She trembled against him long into the night. He stroked her back until she fell asleep, her sniffles finally subsiding. After sending his kikai to wake Kiba, he joined her in sleep.
Sometime later Shino was startled out of his sleep when Sachi sat bolt upright in his lap.
"Sachi-chan? What is it?" Shino asked.
"I thought-" She turned her head to better receive sound from another direction. "I thought I heard something," she turned her head again, "...bees. But it's gone."
"It was probably just a dream," Kiba said after a careful whiff of the air.
"Go back to sleep, Sachi-chan," he whispered and caressed her back again. "We are here to protect you. You don't need to be afraid."
She let her head fall back to his shoulder where she had been resting. He watched her eyes close and slowly felt her body relax against him once again.
Some of you seemed to be worried that Shino would think what Hiro told him would be true. But that was never the case. Shino never doubted Sachi and knew Hiro was only lying.
How are you enjoying things so far? We are close to being done and there haven't been too many suggestions for the bonus chapter. Keep sending in your ideas.