Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

Please read: Hello, is a bit of a heavy chapter, so I'm going to go ahead and issue a possible trigger warning. If you aren't comfortable reading this chapter, don't push yourself.

Many thanks to tieflingwarlock, TheHollowWorld, Talkdirtytome, Emojisrlyf, and Heina for taking the time to review :) Your reviews actually mean a great deal to me, as they are sometimes my motivation to make time to write.

All things considered, I'm very happy with this chapter, and I believe that this rewrite is going very well. Many thanks to those who have stuck by me throughout my decision to rewrite this story.

WARNING: Violence, abuse, manipulation, non-consent, and slight recovery from non-consent.


Light,

Breathe and sleep tight,

Will you defy intriguing ghost lights,

Seeing through all lies and foolish warnings?


Chapter Five: Let the Storm Descend Upon You

Faint mumbling, a harsh voice rambling on about some annoyance, and relentless movement.

Blackness.

Bantering, growls of protest, and more movement.

'I… Wow. I can't believe I'm not-'

Bright light, enough to melt the eyes of some subterranean monstrosity. She could not bring herself to raise her eyelids.

The darkness crept back into her mind, blocking out the painful memories that were lingering within the recesses. When she finally managed to peel them open again, hours later, she found herself shrouded within darkness and cold air. The stench of mold and sulfur stung her smell receptors immediately, and had she possessed the willpower, she would have recoiled back into her treacherous slumber.

Her head was throbbing, and it took her a moment to comprehend what had happened to her.

Flare was dead. She had watched him die. His killer had thrown her across the forest, making her bones rattle. She had been knocked out by the man who had been pursuing her throughout that night, Hidan. The last thing she heard was his arrogant voice, and the last thing she had seen were opaque skies.

She had not been killed, yet. She was slung over someone's shoulder, her head and arms dangling carelessly toward the ground. The blood was rushing to her head, making her thoughts fuzzy and the threat of passing out again too real.

Where was she?

Where had he taken her?

She had to force herself to remain calm. She wanted to jolt upright and fling herself onto the floor to escape, but she was smart enough to know when she had been beaten. Despite her tricks and fast-thinking, the Jashinist had still managed to catch up to her at the end of the night; she was no match for him and his God, a tag team that was formed within the zeniths of purgatory.

'Besides, he would have a better chance of harming me if I was on the ground. He's definitely not opposed to harming women.' She thought, morosely, appealing to her rational mind.

Her best option was to remain still and take extra caution as to not alert her enemy to her consciousness.

"See, what'd I tell ya', Kakuzu? We have forty-five to spare." Hidan's booming voice almost made her flinch. "Looks like you bitched the entire trip for nothing."

Kakuzu growled in response.

She wondered if Kakuzu was the masked man who had killed her brother. The mere thought made her blood boil. She wished that she could get a better look around.

Silence engulfed them as they made their way to their destination. Seven took the time to examine the sparse architecture that they passed, keeping her head down as much as possible. She had been unfortunate; she had regained consciousness after they had already entered the darkness, leaving her with no way of knowing where the exit was.

Judging by the dim light, there were torches lining the walls. They were in either an underground hideout or a dank cave. The stone walls glistened with water and mold, and the misty light was barely enough for her to make out the red clouds on Hidan's cloak, or the red and silver scythe that was mere inches away from slicing into her face.

'Must be a hideout. But would he be stupid enough to take me to his hideout? There may be ninja trying to track me down; I'm sure Shikaku has already reported this. Hmm… Maybe this is just an outpost. I must be somewhere in the Land of Fire.'

Seven had to stifle a gasp when her captor stopped moving abruptly, causing her limp body to see-saw dangerously on his shoulder. Inch by inch, a lecherous hand clawed its way across the bare flesh of her thigh and rested on her buttocks.

She was sure he felt her flinch.

"Hey, since we have time to spare, I'm going to go and make sure she's nice and comfortable when she wakes up." He snickered at his own innuendo, and if Seven had not felt the looming threat of abuse, she would have rolled her eyes incredulously. "Besides, wouldn't want any of the others getting an eyeful of her. You're an exception because you're, like, asexual or something."

She heard the masked man's gravelly voice tell Hidan to fuck off.

They were moving again, but this time she felt like it was just the two of them. Slight relief washed over her soul; the last thing she needed was to fight off two robust men. 'Though it seems like I won't have much of a problem with the masked one. He has a temper and he's strong, but it seems as though he doesn't intrude into his partner's affairs unless they directly relate to him.'

The candles on the wall seemed to be getting brighter. Seven guessed that there were more of them concentrated in one area, or that they were near a window of some kind.

"You're awake, aren't you?"

His slick voice cut into her like barbed wire. There was a wide grin on his face, and his insane purple orbs were smiling with sick delight. He pressed his fingernails into her skin, hard enough to draw blood, and chuckled when he heard her grunt.

She was sensitive to pain; the time that she spent by his side would be prove to be absolutely excruciating. He felt himself growing excited at the thought of her trembling in her own blood, horrified at the many ways that he was able to hurt her. He wondered if there would be enough time to teach her a quick lesson before the meeting.

He gave her a few moments to reply, but was met with silence, much to his chagrin.

"Giving me the silent treatment? Heh. I felt you wake up. Your breathing changed. Thinking that you can outsmart me is going to be your biggest downfall, woman!"

His pace quickened, and she detected a hint of irascibility in his tone. Back at the house, she had learned that he got off on feeling empowered. Perhaps it was in his nature to become angry when he did not get his way. Still, Seven vowed that she would save her words for when the time came for her to justly speak; she would not waste her breath on expressions of haughtiness and false bravery.

She lifted her head and watched as he strode quickly down a corridor with several doors on either side. 'This is either a very large and very tricky hideout, designed to throw off intruders, or many people inhabit this maze.' She thought. It would be exceedingly difficult to plan her eventual departure.

Hidan scowled when he heard footsteps approaching them, unsure of the confrontation that awaited him. If it was Pein or Konan, he would have a lot of explaining to do that he had not prepared for as of yet. If it was anyone else, he would have to guard his stolen property well.

Seven hated the fact that she was not wearing any pants, but was grateful that her brother's jacket was still wrapped securely around her torso. Her body was shivering from the cool cave air, and she knew that someone was approaching. She wondered, vaguely, how many people had seen her private parts since the Jashinist had first exposed her. Exhaling thinly, she prepared herself for a little more dishonour.

"We were beginning to wonder if you and Kakuzu were going to bother showing up. Isn't that right, Master Sasori… hn."

Seven's shoulders tensed at the smooth male voice that wafted through her ears, and prayed that the other Akatsuki members were not as vile as Hidan. Though she had looked at the Bingo Book with Flare once or twice, she did not recognize the name 'Sasori'. Whoever he was, she hoped that he would have the decency to ignore her existence.

Hidan gritted his teeth and hissed at his unfortunate luck. If there was someone he hated more than Pein and Kakuzu, it was Deidara. 'And of all the fucking times he had to show up…' He thought angrily, keeping a secure hand on the naked woman's bottom.

He stopped and waited for the pair before him to pass, stepping to the side. The last thing he wanted was for them to get a real look at his gift. Knowing that bastard explosive expert, he would try to charm the woman into his bed, just as he had with the last few. It seemed as though women were women to him, and that he was willing to insert himself into any type.

The priest rolled his eyes and grumbled a few curse words under his breath. The situation at hand was not helping his mood.

Long blonde hair and short messy red locks bobbed into his dim view. They stopped only metres away from him, analysing him as best as they could. Sasori's lifeless eyes showed no interest, as per usual. However, Hidan found himself grinding his teeth together when he saw Deidara's blue orb snap straight to the woman, inspecting all that her exposed flesh had to offer.

"Don't even fucking think about it, Deidara," The priest snarled, "this one's not for sharing."

Seven elected to remain quiet, her hope that the other Akatsuki members were different than Hidan completely shot out of the realm of possibility. She found herself significantly grateful that the Jashinist seemed to be opposed to passing her around for his companions' enjoyment.

Deidara did not seem to be phased by the albino's harsh attitude, and smirked devilishly.

"Where did you find this one?" He asked. "She looks cleaner than some of the other women you've brought back… hn."

"None of your fucking business, you freak." The Jashinist spat, quickly, "Lord Jashin granted this woman to me. She's not some street whore… So stay the fuck away!"

Seven flinched at his wording, realizing several things at once.

First, she was like a piece of holy property to Hidan. Second, she had some divine purpose that she needed to fulfill before he killed her, which gave her some time to devise a hasty plan. Lastly, Hidan had brought other women – whores – to the hideout, before. It sounded to her like they had been passed around to pleasure some of the other members, so they were unlikely to have been "gifts from Lord Jashin", as Hidan would have stated. Did this mean that he would be easier on her than he had been with the other women? Would he torture her, force himself on her, and treat her like a slave, or did she rank as better than that? Seven somehow doubted it.

Suddenly, a tuft of blonde hair was tickling her face, and a cold hand was lifting her head up by her chin. Tired orbs met with electric blue ones, and the eldest Toho could not hide the look of shock that had been splattered across her visage.

A handsome young man, no more than twenty one, was just inches away, inspecting her face with a small smirk gracing his lips. He was a murderer; his cloak told her that. She wondered just how many people had fallen victim to his cruelty, how many young women had had their hearts broken upon realizing that he was nothing more than a manipulative brute.

She bit her lip softly to hold back the protests that so desperately wanted to surface. She hated how he was staring at her; like a piece of meat that was ready to be purchased. He locked her eyes to his one, and stared into her irises for what seemed like a treacherous eternity. She furrowed her brows ever so slightly.

Strange.

She could not, for the life of her, decipher the aura that he was emitting.

"She's pretty… hn. Pretty enough to become art." He spoke with a grin, finally releasing her chin and allowing her head to drop.

She could have sworn that she had felt something wet lick her face, but deduced that it was likely a drop of moisture from a nearby stalactite.

Somewhere behind them, Sasori sighed in exasperation, clearly disagreeing with his partner.

"Hey, hey, hey!" Hidan bellowed, whipping around to face the blonde artist, "I thought I told you to back the fuck off! She's sacred property, and I don't want your filthy heathen hands all over her!"

Seven gritted her teeth as her body bobbed uncomfortably on the foul-mouthed priest's shoulder. The frazzled woman raised her head to reveal the identity of the third person in the room. Sasori, was it? And the other man was Deidara. None of these names were ringing a bell, and she cursed herself for it. Had she paid closer attention to the Bingo Books, she might have recognized the names and been able to correlate their known abilities.

The auburn eyes of the redhead before her seemed dull and uninterested. His face was doll-like, almost inhuman, and judging by the way his foot was tapping impatiently against the rocky earth, she deemed that he was the type to be impatient.

As Seven took her time analysing the irritated puppet master, Hidan expressed his tumultuous waves of anger to his fellow Akatsuki member.

"You always let me have at least a little time with your concubines… hn." The blonde leered, not at all startled by the intense glare he was receiving from the scythe-wielder.

"I don't let you do shit! You barter for my goods, you prick, but you can't have this one. She's mine. She's supposed to serve a divine purpose, and I don't want her getting tainted by your heretic ways."

The bomber rolled his eye. "It always has something to do with your God." He muttered maliciously, "How many girls have you captured for your prized Jashin, now? Didn't you say that the last one was supposed to serve some purpose, as well? You let me have her…" He grinned at the man like a sly cat, "…and she was good… hn."

Hidan's brows were furrowing. He did not bother to hide his sheer disdain, but this did not deter the blonde; he had the wicked notion that he would be able to sway the Jashinist in his favour. Sighing dramatically, the artist ran a hand through his straight blonde locks. "C'mon… I haven't had a woman in weeks. I've been so busy with missions that I haven't had the time… hn."

Before Deidara's eyes could slither between the woman's legs to witness what she had to offer, Hidan positioned his hand to make sure that her womanhood was out of view. Seven found that being the captive of such a foul man was both a gift and a curse; he was generous enough as not to expose her to his comrades, but unpleasant enough to subject her to his own, forbidden cravings.

"I told you, this one's different," Hidan replied gruffly, "I need her. Lord Jashin says that I do."

The terrorist said nothing for several moments, as if concocting the perfect reply in his head. Seven shivered from his sheer determination. Why did he have to have her? He was a handsome man. She was sure that he could obtain a partner that was far more willing than herself. Maybe he had a hard time finding women willing to sleep with a criminal. Or, perhaps it gave him a thrill. Perhaps he thought himself masculine enough to change her mind in the bedroom, turning her pleas of resistance into cries of pleasure.

Why did some men think this way? She was utterly baffled. No meant no; yes meant yes. True struggling could not willing turn to blissful shrieks.

'They're criminals,' she had to remind herself, 'they gave up laws and morals when they scratched out their headbands. Some of these men find rape as thoughtless and as gratifying as murder… if not a little more so.'

Seven let her head fall against Hidan's back, wincing as she felt one of his blades dig into her cheek. She found herself feeling hopeless, like a piece of meat that had been tossed to a pair of hungry mutts.

Who was she kidding? She would never be able to escape; not with her impractical civilian strength. The men around her were S-ranked criminals, all with unknown abilities. Hell, even if she did know their abilities, what would she be able to do?

In foolish truth, she had never thought that she would have to fight. Despite the murders of her parents, she had always believed that she would be safe inside her village. She had thought that as long as she knew how to heal, she would survive; she had been naïve.

But, was it too late for her to learn, even now?

Sasori stared at the woman with slight curiosity. At first glance, she was just a useless villager that had been captured by Hidan as a concubine. It had irked him that she had had the gall to analyse his face as she did, and it took all of his rational being to not pierce her flesh with a poisoned kunai.

The look in her eyes told him that she had potential, regardless of whether or not she was an untrained stripling. The way her eyes had traced his wooden face made him realize that she was the type to stay dormant and submissive until her chance came. She was a thinker, raised on the pride of intelligence. She calculated her options, calculated her enemies, and used her mind to terrorize them. She was an impending threat, if she ever realized how to manipulate her captor, and if it had been anyone else but Hidan, he would have told him this. He would have told him to watch out for her ensnaring mind.

Sighing with increased exasperation, he looked away, cursing Deidara's insistent babbling. At this rate, they were going to be late.

"Pein isn't going to like that you brought another woman into the base, not since the last one nearly got away… hn." The blonde said slowly.

Hidan would not fall for Deidara's tricks. He recognized that Pein was all-knowing and considered himself a God; it was likely that he already knew about the woman's presence. Part of the upcoming meeting would probably regard his concerns about her inhabitancy.

Shaking his head, the Jashinist smirked. "Oh, fuck off. That woman escaped because you were careless." He waved his hand casually, as if brushing off the artist's concerns as petty inconveniences, "I'll deal with Pein when the time comes. Besides, this one's not getting away. Even if she did, we're not in the Land of Fire, anymore. There's no one around. She wouldn't know where the hell she was going, and we'd catch up real quick."

Seven's breath hitched at this new piece of information. How long had she been unconscious? She was so far away from her home, and her navigational skills were appalling. Which direction would she run toward? What sort of animals were in this region? What was the temperature like?

Her heartbeat was speeding up and her breathing was getting laboured. She was having an anxiety attack.

What if she was in the Land of Wind, where the sun scotched the sand and water was scarce? If she escaped from the outpost without any supplies, she would die. And what if she ran into rabid animals or rogue ninja? The odds were not in her favour.

Hidan released a hearty laugh, feeling Seven's stomach rise and fall with haste. He had managed to strike fear into her guiltless little heart without even meaning to. Excellent.

"Were you thinking of ways to escape, my little Seven?" He asked in a teasing tone, letting her name hang on his tongue to irritate her, "I swear to Jashin, you won't escape alive. No one will find you. You're all alone here."

She could feel him grinning and tried to ignore his words. The way he had said her name, as if she was nothing more than a pet, made her sick to her stomach. He was trying to psych her out, so that she would get stupid and careless. He wanted her to bite back. He wanted her anxiety to grow until she was backed into the dark recesses of her mind, with nothing but her coherent thoughts to save her from insanity.

She chose not to reply, clamping her eyes shut and willing her teeth to stop chattering. She had to calm down. She could have an anxiety attack later, when none of her enemies were around. Right now, she had to keep a clear head.

"Seven?" The blonde bomber whispered, as if in awe. "What a unique name… hn."

The woman's head shot up in an instant, upon hearing her name spoken by another. Craning her neck to meet his face, she frowned. Who had given him the right to utter her name with such fascination? She was not entertainment. Her anger flared, and she did not even dare to look away when she noticed him staring right back at her.

The priest turned away from his two comrades, chuckling lowly to himself. Her quivering, the way her breathing was so harsh and nervous, and the way her heart pounded against her ribcage – all of it was arousing him. The way she became so livid whenever her name was spoken, the way she was becoming so irrational, wearing her emotions f her sleeve – he needed to claim her. He had been waiting for days to do this, and now was the time.

He did not care that she seemed to be having some sort of pissing content with Deidara, or that Deidara was plotting ways by which he could get her beneath him; all that mattered was the tension in his groin.

Meeting or no meeting, and consent or no consent, he was going to relieve his stress.

He heard Deidara call out to the woman, upset that she was being drawn away from him so soon; he had not even had the chance to throw any advances at her, sure that he would be able to have her begging for him.

'Narcissistic little shit.' The silver-haired man thought, disgusted with Akatsuki's youngest member. He would deal with the blonde at a later time, perhaps work out a small deal with him if he had to, just to shut him up. Perchance, if he was feeling generous, he might even allow him an hour or so with his little gift, provided he kept his clay creations away from her body.

'Now wouldn't that strike fear into her fucking heart!' He chuckled aloud at the thought of Seven, an intelligent, self-respecting young woman, being passed around to a group of S-ranked criminals. Oh, how her self-worth would plummet, and oh, how he would enjoy her tears and misperception.

Her heartbeat was steadily going back to normal, and her breathing was stabilizing; she could not believe that she had managed to calm herself down.

Seven raised her head so that she could gaze at the two men that they were leaving behind. Though they were getting further and further away with each of Hidan's long strides, she could still faintly make them out. She did not like the feral look in the blonde's eye; it told her that he was capable of losing his temper and exploding. The redhead seemed to be much more tolerable, though she knew that looks could be deceiving; he was probably just as sour as his artistic comrade.

She could not stop a chill that ran up her spine. The men around her were intimidating. She knew well enough to keep her distance from both Hidan and Deidara, their intentions as filthy as their eyes. The redhead seemed to have a temper that flared up when he was forced to wait. There had been something about his face, too, that Seven did not like.

Hidan's hoarse snicker made her flinch. "Don't tell me those two actually scared you. They're harmless compared to me."

Was she getting gooseflesh from the cold, or the implication of his words? She could no longer tell.

Down the straight, dark hallway they went, until they reached a gloomy brown door at the very end of it. Seven noticed how cold it had gotten since they had progressed further into the base. 'We must be pretty deep underground.' She thought, grimly.

Twisting the knob and nearly kicking the door off of its hinges, the religious man stepped into the room and pulled her off of his shoulder. He tossed her onto the ground savagely, as if angered by something that she had done. There was a wicked shine in his eye – she did not need light to see this.

Her internal wounds did not cause her as much pain as she had expected them to. In fact, other than the new bruise that she was sure to have on her tailbone, she could barely feel any pain at all. 'Just how many days have I been unconscious?' She pondered for the umpteenth time, alarmed at her physical state.

When Hidan slammed the door shut, Seven was jerked from her thoughts. It was dark. She was cold. Worst yet, she was naked save for the heavy jacket that sat atop her shoulders. She had not thought to take a look around her before the small candle light from the hallway had diminished; she had no idea what the layout of the room was like.

Hidan flexed his shoulder, dropped his scythe, and cracked his joints. Carrying that woman around for several days had taken a toll on his bones and muscles; he was actually quite tired. Striding over to the far side of the room, he picked up the bunch of matches he had left on the table from his last visit and lit one of the candles on the wall. The flame burned surprisingly bright, illuminating the entire room. His eyes lurched to his nervous prey. She was looking all around her, unsure of what to do. Her fear was even higher than it had been in the hallway, as if she knew what he was planning to do to her.

Whipping her head around to stare at him, the eldest Toho managed to get to her feet with little effort, surprising herself once again. Her joints were stiff and her legs wobbled under her weight. If the priest was planning on attacking her, she was at an even worse advantage than normal. She locked eyes with him, determined to make sure that he did not disappear from her sight. If he made any sudden movements, she would speed for the door.

'I never imagined that I was this pathetic,' she thought, disappointed that she could do no more than run away.

The room was very small. From what she had seen, there was only essential furnishings within it, which gathered evidence for her idea that they were not in Akatsuki's true hideout. There was another door on the other side of the room, where the Jashinist was standing, possibly a bathroom or a closet. There was an alter close by, as well, with a demonic statue in the middle of the display. It was a horrific sight, and she found herself wondering how many people he had sacrificed there; how many people had seen that grotesque statue before they perished?

"Admiring your new home, bitch?" He asked almost sweetly, noticing that her eyes were frantically inspecting the room.

Seven scowled at him, but kept up with her pact of silence.

He took a few steps toward her, and she willed herself to take a few steps back. His legs were longer; he covered more distance than her. Before she could initiate her plan, he was upon her. Her wrist was grabbed and she was spun in the opposite direction of the door. Once in position, he pushed her back so that she was on the bed.

He was on top of her in mere seconds, fumbling with his pants whilst trying his best to hold her flailing body down. Her legs rose to kick him wherever she could, and her arms swung relentlessly against him. She bucked her hips hard, hoping that she had enough strength to shove him away. She bit her lower lip hard, determined to hold in frustrated whimpers; he already knew that she was scared, and her weak vocalizations would only serve to egg him on.

The albino gritted his teeth, his rage growing in waves. Having unzipped his pants, he used both of his hands to grip her forearms and slam them down on the bed, holding her legs down with his lower half.

The woman shook her head slowly, trying to mask the fear in her eyes with anger. He did not know why, but the defiant look on her face only served to strengthen his fury.

"Listen to me, you fucking bitch," he snarled, moving his face close to hers. He had expected her to – hoped that she would – look away. She stood her ground, as if she did not want to give into the fear that came with his sudden assault. His sheer hate for her was growing; soon it would be uncontrollable, and he would do something that he would regret.

"I don't have much time before that meeting starts…" He murmured to himself, closing his eyes in frustration.

She could feel his breath against her skin, and fought back a grimace. He was disgusting. Everything that he was planning on doing to her was disgusting. The hate that she felt for him, the death wishes that she sent his way, and the utter fury she felt for his sick actions were overpowering.

'He will pay for this. I swear to God, he will pay for this.' She repeated to herself slowly, like a mantra.

"I'm stressed the fuck out and tired as hell," he growled, the vibrations form his voice making her body rumble, "I don't want to deal with your shit, so let me take what I want. And don't let me see that defiant little fucking face of yours, or I swear to Jashin…" He trailed off, but Seven understood his point.

Still, her face did not waver. If he was going to force himself on her, and if she could not physically fight him off, she would stand mentally and emotionally truculent.

Hidan could barely believe his eyes. Most of the other women had started out like her, with those shitty little looks of protest on their faces, but after they heard his speech and witnessed his abilities, they had accepted their fates. This woman had seen his power, she had seen his strength, yet still, she did not vacillate.

Maybe she needed a reminder of her position.

Rising off of her, he managed to drag her to the headboard of the bed. Since the last woman, he had installed restraints to keep his victims in line. He could hardly wait to see the look on her face when she realized that escape was inevitable.

He locked one of her wrists into the first restraint easily, but only because she had been unaware of his intentions. After feeling the cold metal dig into her flesh, her struggling became frantic. Her eyes widened and she wriggling around like an insect. He would have laughed at her pathetic squirming if he was not so annoyed.

"Stay still, damn it!" He hissed, finally getting a grip on her opposite wrist. After clamping that one into the restraint, as tightly as possible without breaking her bone, he grinned down at her.

"Now what, bi-" His cruel mocking was interrupted when her knee connected with his stomach, successfully winding him. Staggering backward, he clutched his stomach and bent over to catch his breath.

Seven glared at him, but there was no look of triumph in her eyes. She had managed to land a luck hit, but now he knew to look out for her feet. Her fight was far from over.

The Jashinist rose his head slowly, opening his lilac eyes to glare at his victim. There, as he advanced upon her, he truly looked demonic. She felt her body quake, but willed herself to endure.

He would not kill her; not yet. She still had time. The worst he could do was hurt her.

Still, that horrendous look in his eyes made her hair stand on-end. It was different than before, more rabid. Before she knew what she was doing, her lips parted.

"Stay away from me." She whispered.

Hidan cracked a feral grin, the whites of his eyes looking bloodshot and his pupils dilating. "Finally cut the shit, huh? Am I worthy enough for words, now, when you know I'm about to hurt you?"

He was insane.

She had made something within him snap.

She struggled vigorously against the restraints, hoping that one or both of them would give. She had to get away from him. There was no denying the recklessness that was laced into his voice. Her fear was taking over and her soul could no longer equate with peace. Yanking at her bindings with all her might, Seven yelped when she felt his nails dig into her upper thigh. She made to kick him in the face, praying that he would fall for the same trick twice. He easily caught her foot and tossed it aside, climbing onto the mattress and settling himself on top of her.

Grabbing a fistful of her hair, she felt a cold metal collar clasp tightly around her neck, binding her head to the headboard. She watched with trepidation as he removed himself from his pants and brushed against her entrance. It was too late to close her legs. It was too late to plead for herself. He was about to take everything away from her, in one foul thrust.

"You a virgin?" He asked, wanting very much for her to nod her head.

Seven only gazed up at him, her mouth slightly agape, as if she was trying to force herself to be silent. She was not a virgin; she had not been a virgin in years. Still, she did not want her womanhood tarnished with rape. He was about to dehumanize her, to make her feel as though she was anything but strong.

"I'm… No. Stop."

"Not a virgin?" Hidan asked, with a hint of disappointment. That was a shame. He would have enjoyed taking the woman and altering her world. The damage would have been greater if she had been innocent.

Oh well. It did not matter that much.

He inched his way into her womanhood, relishing in the feeling of her walls squeezing him, wanting him out. The last time, he had only managed to get halfway inside of her before she had tricked him. This time, she could do nothing but lay there and take it.

When he was all the way inside of her, he grunted softly, stilling himself to cherish how good she felt. The look on her face was priceless. Her skin had grown about two shades paler, and her eyes were slowly losing their colour. She was finally realizing just how much damage he was capable of inflicting. He had no doubt that she would start to scream before he was done with her.

"Fuck," He moaned, "for a slut, you're pretty fucking tight."

Seven was in pain. She had not been prepared at all; her womanhood had been wholly dry. He had not cared to even try and prepare her, but perhaps that was for the best; she did not want him to think that she was enjoying such a retched act with him.

She grunted and reeled her head to the side, determined to not make eye contact with the man atop her. She felt nauseous. A small part of her wished that she would throw up; surely no man would be able to maintain an erection when their partner was vomiting. Her stomach churned at the mere thought of such a mess, and she had to swallow uneasily. Her legs felt heavy, as if there were one hundred kilogram weights on each of them. She found that she could not lift them, could not jerk them, and could not even feel them. Was she going into a state of shock?

When she felt him move in and out of her unprepared haven, she began to tremble. Her arms jittered within their cuffs, and she could feel the collar digging into her neck as she unconsciously tried to slip away from him. This was too real, too painful.

The Jashinist kept up his wondrously slow pace, lolling his head back in ecstasy. He loved how she looked beneath him, how he fit so well over her body. The dreadful awareness that she was being taken against her will mixed well with his aura, and he enjoy watching the multitude of facial expressions weave across her face. He choked back a groan and picked up his pace.

Seven clawed at her restraints when she felt him go faster. He was hitting her cervix hard, making her grit her teeth in agony. She prayed that this torture would be over soon, so that she could begin to prepare for the next outrageous act that he had in store for her. Was this what her life was to be, continuously preparing her body for endless abuse and unexpected moments of excruciating shame?

"Fuck," she hissed. Though her eyes were closed tightly, she could feel his predatorial grin burning into her face. He was drinking every emotion that she displayed, getting off on how much she hated him.

When he finally came, he pulled himself out of her and spattered his fluids onto her abdomen, cursing quietly to himself. The woman was shocked that he had even bothered to use any type of birth control method. Or, perhaps he just liked to see his women coated in semen. Regardless, she was at least grateful that he had decided against relieving himself within her; it eased her mind to know that pregnancy was unlikely in the conceivable future.

He sat propped above her for several moments, panting heavily, pouring his breath onto her sweat-drenched visage. Seven cracked her eyes open to stare up at him, allowing the hate that she felt to overcome her fear. She imagined the many ways that she could exact her revenge, and the many ways by which she could destroy him. The fire that burned within her soul was ready to consume her – ready to consume him, for all he had done.

He had destroyed her family's home.

He had assaulted both her and her younger brother.

Her younger brother – the last family member that she had – was killed because of him.

Now, he had raped her, taking her last bit of pride and virtue, defiling her individuality and tainting her body.

This man was no priest; he was a goddamn hellion, a complete waste of flesh.

And god, how she wanted to wrap her hands around his neck and squeeze, squeeze, squeeze until he stopped breathing for good. If she was ever given a good chance to destroy him, not even Jashin would be able to stop her. He would be condemned for his wrongdoings by her hand, and his last breath would be of her victorious face.

She wondered how many of his other victims had had these thoughts. She wondered how many had been chained to his bed, forced to relive their trauma dozens of times over. When push came to shove, she was just as vulnerable as they had been; just as doomed. What could she accomplish that they did not? She was not a ninja, nor was she trained to control her chakra. She only knew a few self-defence moves. She did not have the talent for picking locks, finding her way out of restraints, or using physical strength to overcome imprisonment. Even when it came to direction, she was easily thwarted.

Negativity was overwhelming her, once again. This time, however, something within her snapped.

'What are am I really going to accomplish, sitting here and moping about uncontrollable events?' She asked herself, harshly. 'I can't let my anger, fear, or self-pity stun me. I need a clear mind. I need to…' She paused, refraining from thinking the next few thoughts that lingered inside her rational mind.

Could she? Would she? Was there any other choice…? She gulped unconsciously. She could. She would. There was nothing else that she could do, if she wanted to come out on top. The remainder of her journey would not be without suffering and scarification, but she would prepare herself for the worst possible outcome; that way, there would be fewer things able to faze her when the time arrived.

'…I need to start training if I want to get out of here.'

Hidan lifted himself off of her slowly, still catching his breath. He tucked his manhood back into his pants and gazed at his victim. Her cheeks were flushed, though the rest of her body was as pale as the moon. She did not look at him. She did not move at all. Her eyes were casted downward, as if she was in deep thought. The look on her face was unreadable.

He picked up a discarded rag from the other side of the room and moved toward her. If there was one thing he hated the most, it was filth. Blood was a beautiful, sacred thing, but semen was expelled from the body due to necessity; it would not do to have his prisoner dirtying his bedsheets.

The Jashinist placed his toweled hand against her skin and watched as she flinched, snapping from her thoughts and causing her to glance down at him. The vague look on her face was replaced with anger, frustration, fear, and… determination?

Was he seeing correctly?

Had he not just humiliated her, forced her body to bend to his advances against her volition, and taken a piece of her sanity?

He grinded his teeth together furiously. He did not understand why that look made him so infuriated, but he was determined to do whatever it took to wipe it from her face. She would only ever be able to regard him with fear; he would prove to be an unpredictable master who lacked tolerance for anything outside of his norm.

He tossed the dirty rag behind him when he was done and took advantage of the way Seven's legs were spread. She gasped as he stuck two of his digits into her opening, probing as far as he could. He felt her clench around him and grinned, misconstruing the act for arousal. Removing his fingers, he brought them up to his face for closer inspection. Seven felt the need to vomit, again, when she saw her fluids coating them.

He smirked cruelly at how she nibbled her lower lip in frustration.

"And here I thought you weren't enjoying yourself," he cackled, standing upright and stepping back to take a better look at her.

Seven growled lowly, narrowing her eyes at the repulsive man. Was he stupid, or was he just trying to get to her? Probably both. Did he truly believe that the fluids on his fingers were a result of her enjoyment? Her body had produced lubrication for his penis because her chasm had been too dry for him to thrust comfortably; it was an evolutionary mechanism. She had not enjoyed herself, but he was surely trying to make her feel as if she had.

Once again, she wondered how many women had believed him, trusting in his poisonous words. How many had battled with themselves, thinking that they had enjoyed his actions, and how many had learned to enjoy his touch as a result of his mental manipulation?

Just as he was about to jab at her mental state further, there was a firm knock at the door. Both of them froze and craned their necks to stare at the distraction. Seven felt her skin begin to crawl. How much danger would befall her when Hidan opened that door? Who would be standing there, and what would they want?

She did her best to stomp out her paranoia as she watched the religious fanatic twist the doorknob and throw open the door.

"You're late." Kakuzu's gruff voice echoed throughout the room and the long hallway beyond it. His eyes were wrathful, and his clenched fists suggested that he was not in the mood to deal with his partner's antics.

Hidan seemed unsurprised to see the taller man. He had known that Pein would send Kakuzu to fetch him due to his tardiness. Releasing a hoarse chuckle, the silver-crowned man grinned. "Yeah, yeah. I'm coming."

Almost flabbergasted at the albino's willingness, Kakuzu said nothing and began to walk away. Hidan stepped out of the room and ran a hand through his shaky locks. Casting a quick glance back at the woman shackled to his bed, he winked slyly, "Behave yourself, woman. I'll be back soon, and then we can have some more fun."

As the door closed him, Hidan jogged to catch up with the ex-Waterfall ninja. Sighed, he posed a question, "Is this meeting as pointless as the last one, or has Pein finally decided to mobilize us?"

Kakuzu sighed at the other man's stupidity. The time had not yet come for them to begin their initial plan, but that did not mean that their efforts and missions had been pointless. "Anita Seagrave, a rather generous woman from the Cloud Village, has offered her financial assistance to us. I'm sure there's a catch. Still, an interesting topic of discussion."

Hidan rolled his eyes, clearly disinterested, "Of course you'd find that shit interesting, you money-grubbing piece of shit. What does this have to do with me, anyways? I don't give a fuck about money."

Kakuzu had to bite his tongue and hold back his growing anger; it would not do to enter the meeting with a clouded head. Pein needed him to make a clear financial judgement regarding the matter at hand. "The money will benefit us in the long run. We can use it as a bargaining chip. Many people will turn a blind eye to our actions if they are offered enough money."

Hidan did not follow anything that the masked man was saying, nor did he truly care about the advancement of the organization. The Akatsuki had offered him their protection as long as he remained loyal to them; that was all he needed to keep up with his sacrifices. Whatever they wanted to do with their finances was none of his concern.

Throughout the meeting, the Jashinist occupied himself with new ways to torture his latest gift; he was ever so eager to return to his room.