Chapter 8

Quiet Counsel

"Kakashi..." Genma whispered to his one-time ANBU captain, but there was no response...just as there'd been no response for over an hour since Orochimaru had left the room. He was starting to wonder if the man was still alive. Genma stretched his fingers up into the chains above his head and carefully maneuvered his body until he was facing the wall where he knew Kakashi was held. The sight that met his eyes made him wish he'd stayed turned away.

"Dammit...what the hell did that bastard do to you?" There was still no answer.

There wasn't an inch of the Copy-ninja's body that wasn't showing the signs of Orochimaru's attentions from their 'session' earlier that day. Kakashi's silver hair lay matted to his head in various spots – stained to a deep red by the blood the Sannin caused to flow. Streaks of crimson ran across the features of Kakashi's unmasked face – that face now swollen and bruised from far too many strikes of Orochimaru's fists when an answer was given that didn't meet their captor's expectations. And that seemed to happen more often than not.

Genma had always prided himself on having the most sarcastic mouth in the Five Great Countries But he knew now, after listening to the exchanges between Orochimaru and Kakashi for countless hours, that his abilities would barely gain him honorable mention when compared to the Copy-ninja. It seemed that the more damage the Snake-Bastard did to Kakashi, the more acidic the responses became. And of course, being the sadistic bastard he is, Orochimaru took it as a challenge to break the silver-haired man.

Kakashi's body had trails of abuse marking paths from the crown of his head all the way down to the soles of his feet. His skin was bruised, burnt, gouged and worse, making Genma wonder how the hell anyone could survive such torture.

A small groan found its way out of Kakashi's mouth giving Genma hope that perhaps the man survived after all. He whispered once more. "Kakashi...can you hear me?"

One swollen eye lid forced itself open, and Genma couldn't help but cringe at the sight of broken blood vessels lining that eye. Then he saw the tip of Kakashi's tongue run across cracked and bleeding lips before the man forced words past an obviously injured throat.

"Yes, Genma...it seems my ears are still working fine."

Genma furrowed his brow in concern when those words were followed by a coughing fit that looked like it was causing his ribs to skewer him from the inside out. He honestly had no idea how Kakashi was still breathing, let alone conversing with him. Orochimaru put the man through every single 'application' that was tested on him over the past two weeks – only he did them all to Kakashi in the course of one long, drawn-out session.

"Damn it Kakashi...why didn't you just tell him what he wanted to know?"

Kakashi smiled at him. Or at least Genma assumed that was the expression on that swollen face. "He didn't say 'please'..."

Genma narrowed his eyes. "Will you knock off the smart-ass answers, Kashi...I'm not that Snake-bastard."

"Fine." Kakashi shifted within his chains, groaning at the pain the movement caused. "Because if I ever tell him what he wants...then you become expendable."

Genma's eyes went wide at that comment. "Kakashi…you can't possibly think that I even matter to that sick bastard...not after what he did to Izumo and Iwashi..."

There was no answer at first and Genma wasn't sure he'd been heard...but then Kakashi lifted his head and stared into his eyes with a look that was so unguarded that Genma's breath caught in his chest. He'd never seen such raw emotion in this man...ever.

"Genma. I never wanted my choices to affect anyone in the Leaf Village. If I hadn't been so weak...if I'd just fought back a bit more...Izumo and Iwashi would still be alive."

Genma couldn't believe his ears. "Weak?! What are you talking about? You're stronger than anyone I've ever known!"

Kakashi lowered his head and sighed. Genma saw him clench his fist and saw a white and red ring on his fingers. "I let Itachi's words push all thoughts of the bonds with you and the others out of the picture. I let the Akatsuki's lies mean more to me than our friendships over the years."

Genma shook his head furiously, rattling his chains in the process. "You stupid, egotistical bastard!"

Kakashi stared at him with open surprise as he continued. "What the hell is wrong with you, Hatake? So you made a mistake. You listened to someone you shouldn't have. You were duped. Welcome to the human race, Kakashi! We all make mistakes!"

After a moment of stunned silence, the Copy-ninja's eyes returned to their normal half-lidded stare. "My mistakes cost Izumo and Iwashi their lives...and I'll be damned if I'll add your miserable neck to that list, Shiranui."

Genma blinked in disbelief at the logic of the silver-haired man and was about to argue about it when he saw Kakashi's head lift up and his body tense.

"They're coming..."

In the instant that followed, Genma managed to turn back toward the door just in time to see Kabuto and Sasuke walk into the room. They were followed closely by Lord Orochimaru, and the man looked as though his temper hadn't settled down in the least since he'd left at the end of Kakashi's last session. All thoughts of arguing with the Copy-ninja were quickly replaced with the hope that they'd both survive whatever came next.

Tsunade stared at the portraits of the four previous Hokage lining the wall and sighed. She sank farther into the couch and focused in particular on the Third and Fourth's faces while she tried to rub her growing headache away.

"Tell me boys…what did I do wrong? Why didn't he come back?"

They stared back at her, offering no advice. Tsunade closed her eyes until the image of Kakashi's masked face filled her mind. She wrenched those eyes open again.

"Dammit!"

It had been like this since the brat was taken months ago. Any time she closed her eyes she'd see his silver-haired head in exacting detail. She hadn't slept a full night since word of his defection to the Akatsuki, and now she found herself desperate to find the young man before something else happened to him. She stared up into the Fourth Hokage's smiling features and found herself chuckling.

"That brat must have really put you through the wringer if the act of being Hokage could put a smile on your face, Minato." She sighed again. "But still, I can't help but think he isn't truly gone for good. So, until I manage to find him, keep an eye on the brat – keep him safe."

A knock on the door caught Tsunade's attention. Now what? "Come in!"

Her aide walked into the room. Shizune's eyes told Tsunade there was bad news long before the young woman opened her mouth to speak.

"Lady Tsunade. We've lost contact with Team Genma."

Tsunade pressed her fingers to her temple again and closed her eyes, knowing Shizune would continue to report.

"The last communication was two and a half weeks ago saying they'd located a potential source of information regarding Kakashi's location...but there's been nothing since."

Tsunade lowered her hands to her lap. "Where were they last reported to be?"

She heard Shizune's deep intake of breath and knew instinctively she didn't want to hear the answer.

"They were on the outskirts of Sound, Hokage."

"Great!" She opened her eyes and stared into the faces on the wall. They were of no more help than they'd been earlier. "Fetch Ibiki and Asuma. I want their thoughts on what this means."

"Yes, Lady Tsunade." Shizune bowed slightly but made no move to leave.

Tsunade turned toward the dark-haired aide. "Is there something else, Shizune?"

The younger woman blushed slightly and fidgeted. "The counselors are demanding to see you again."

"Demanding?" Shizune cringed at her tone. Tsunade frowned but then waved her hand toward the pictures of the Hokage. "Tell them I'm already taking counsel today."

Shizune scratched at her ear. "Do you really want me to say that?"

Tsunade rolled her eyes. "Yes...but I suppose it would be better in the long run if you tell them to come back this afternoon and I'll see them then."

Shizune nodded with approval and left the room. Tsunade glanced at the image of the Third Hokage accusingly. "How the hell did they end up so different than you, Old Man... hmmm?"

As usual, the picture gave no reply.