At first, they could only stare, as if remembering something long forgotten. Then, with a choked sob, Reni rushed forward and buried her wet head against his neck, pressing herself as close to him as she could.
Kakuzu wrapped his arms around her soaked body, holding her shivering form. She kept murmuring his name over and over, and he found himself doing the same, tears streaming.
Hidan watched them uncomfortably, then left the room and wandered around, feeling the searing hot pain cut through him. Reni really wasn't his to keep. And it hurt so much.
A pained sigh escaping his throat, he walked out of the apartment, hands shoved into his pockets and shoulders hunched.
The girl cried and whimpered, rubbing her face into his chest, saying his name repeatedly. The giant held her, holding her as close as he possibly could. Finally, when her sobs subsided, she pulled away regretfully, keeping her eyes averted in case he would be angry.
He only said her name softly, and she looked up, into the eyes she used to think were odd.
His face held only concern, and an emotion her language had no name for, the same that spread throughout her body. She didn't know what it was, but it was almost like what she had felt for her mother. Not exactly, but close.
He brushed a few strands of hair away from her face, whispering three syllables, the three she wished so desperately to understand.
He stood, and she stood up abruptly as well, watching his movements. When he did nothing but walk into another room, motioning for her to stay, she looked around the room, eyes scanning curiously. The room was small, but functional.
A hand landed on her shoulder, and she twisted away, snarling, from the one that was going to torture her again. Screams rang around her, sobs coming from the new caged ones. The man stood before her, whip raised and ready to descend. She closed her eyes, preparing for the blow, and-
She woke up on the floor, the giant hovering over her worriedly, pressing a wet cloth to her forehead.
She groaned and shook her head, half raising into a sitting position. Looking to her right, she could see the smaller man looking at her, concern showing through his expression.
She whimpered and tried standing, staggering slightly, the giant putting an arm out to keep her steady. She took it gratefully, sight fading for a second and then coming back.
Looking at their expressions, she wondered what had happened.
Leaving her to go get a towel, Kakuzu went into the small bathroom, grabbing one off the counter there. He came back into the room, placing a hand on her shoulder to draw her attention.
Reni whirled around, snarling, body crouched defensively. Her eyes seemed to be looking into another time, one where the only people that touched her were trying to hurt her.
She bit into his hand briefly, then pulled away, cringing and looking upward, seeing something that wasn't there. She yowled in fear, and closed her eyes, tucking her head.
She then collapsed on the floor, unconscious.
Kakuzu could only stare for a few moments, then rushed to her side, ignoring his bleeding hand. He felt her temperature, found it to be normal, then rushed to the kitchen, wetting a cloth quickly before running back to put it on her forehead.
Hidan re-entered the apartment then, rushing over when he saw Reni collapsed on the floor.
"What the fuck happened?!"
"I don't know. I touched her shoulder, and she started acting strange…."
Kakuzu's voice trailed off, realizing.
Hidan noticed this, and asked, "What is it?"
"She must have been having a flashback."
"A what?"
"She thought she was back with the slavers. She forgot where she was."
He looked down at the unconscious girl.
"What did they do to her?"
Hidan could only cringe.
"The file's on the table. Just…… wait until she's asleep tonight before reading it. She's been through enough without seeing you angry."
Kakuzu looked at him sharply.
"What happened?"
"Let's just say she had enough justification to tear a man to shreds, and rip the intestines out of another one while he was still breathing. Well, screaming, but it's the same."
Reni opened her eyes, groaning. They looked at her sharply, and Kakuzu removed the cloth.
She looked around the room, a confused look on her face, then looked at him, softly saying his name. She tried standing, and when she staggered, Kakuzu held her up, supporting her.
She sighed, looking at them, and slowly started sinking, eyes closing. Kakuzu led her to his small bedroom, laying her on the bed and letting her sleep, covering her with the blankets. She buried her face into his pillow, inhaling his scent, and fell asleep, curled up into a tight ball. Kakuzu watched her for a few moments, then walked back into his living room/ kitchen, walking to the table and grabbing her file.
He sat on the couch, leaving Hidan the lone chair in the kitchen. The immortal grumbled, but sat down, laying his head on the table and closing his eyes.
Kakuzu sent out a wave of chakra, searching for any foreign signatures before starting, an old habit of his. Sensing nothing, he opened the folder, flipping to the front page and beginning to read, devouring every sentence.
As the hours passed, he began to become angrier and angrier, fingers clenching the pages tightly, knuckles white. What had they done to her? The sweet, innocent girl who stayed out of society's way?
Turning to the section with the rape mentioned, he swore quietly, spitting in disgust. Monsters. That's all they were. No wonder she had been so frightened and distrusting when he had first seen her, as the hologram.
Hidan suddenly jerked, raising his drooling head off the table, muttering, "Whu….?"
Looking around, and feeling the drool on his face, he turned to Kakuzu as he cleaned his face of saliva.
"Oi, fucker, what time is it?"
"Look at the clock, idiot."
Either too out of it to remark, or not caring, Hidan looked around the kitchen, eyes finally landing on the microwave and noticing the pictures lining the walls as he read the time.
"Dumbass, it's past midnight. Just go to fucking sleep already", he said, hiding his jealousy at him. He cared just as much for Reni as he did, yet she only liked the stitched man back.
Kakuzu only grunted in response, flipping the page. Hidan sighed.
"Look dumbass, just get up so I can have the fucking couch. Go read on your bed or something."
Kakuzu growled and rose, keeping his face buried in the papers, walking to his room and narrowly missing a wall. Hidan shook his head and flopped down, closing his eyes as his old partner shut off the lights.
Kakuzu managed to read for a few minutes more, then sleep overtook him.
The girl tried running, tearing at the bonds that held her arms down and kept her feet secure. The man walked toward her, smiling cruelly, a whip in his hand.
The girl tried twisting away, but the sharp angles of the metal only pressed deeper against her bare skin, cold metal chilling her and raising goose-bumps.
The man snapped the whip across her stomach, then dropped it as he heard her screams, smiling growing wider as he removed his clothing.
He dropped down beside her, running a hand through her hair in mock concern, pulling away when she tried biting him. He punched her face, then forced a knee in between her legs, spreading them. His scent overpowered her nostrils as she tried one last time to be free, failing and feeling pain, horrible pain, ripping her apart.
He laughed again, and raised a club, hitting her arm and laughing at her screams when it snapped. The girl jumped up again, and-
The girl opened her eyes with a gasp, looking wildly around her. It was dark, and only a few flashing lights could be seen on the ceiling here and there.
She rolled to her feet, cradling her arm against her body, whimpering quietly. Around her, the sounds were unfamiliar, quiet, so much unlike the pained screams of her past.
She whimpered, then climbed onto the bed again, searching for the giant, needing him.
She followed his smell to his form, and she curled up on top of his chest, feeling him wrap an arm around her and mutter worriedly. The light flicked on, and she could feel his gaze on her, watching her.
She whimpered and shook, trying to press herself further against him, his smell warding off nightmares. He murmured gently and held her close, rocking her slightly as she tried to calm herself.
She shook, and slipped into a dreamless sleep, safe in his arms.
Kakuzu wakened when he felt the weight on his chest, drowsily feeling around to see what it was. To his surprise, he felt the familiar, light weight of Reni, shaking and shivering.
He flicked on the light, looking down at her and softly asking what was wrong. She only whimpered and pressed herself closer to him, face an expressionless mask.
Sighing, he held her and rocked her gently until she fell asleep again. When he was certain she was under, he turned out the lights again, settling down himself with her in his arms.
He woke to an alarm clock ringing, and Reni scrabbling to her feet, snarling and snapping at empty air, the same look on her face as the previous night during her flashback.
He slammed down the button that turned the clock off, holding her down so she wouldn't hurt herself. She wailed in fear, fighting his grip, until the people in the apartment next to him started pounding on the walls to quiet them.
He muffled her cries with his hand, and Hidan ran in, looking around.
"What the fuck's going on?!"
"Help me hold her! She's having another flashback!"
Hidan ran over and pressed a knee onto her arm, and she gave up, sobbing and losing her fight.
Kakuzu got off her, horrified, and she curled into a ball, buying her face in her arms and crying. He knelt back down and gently rubbed her back, slowly picking her up and cradling her.
She remained still, body pliant and fight-less in his arms, tears streaming down her face. He held her, and Hidan rubbed her shoulder gently, face concerned.
She eventually returned from her flashback, looking around her with a tear-stained face. She saw Kakuzu, and leaned against him, softly whining.
He picked her up and carried her to his bed, leaving her there temporarily to get food from his fridge. He pulled out whatever meat he had, and walked back into the room, seeing Hidan stroking her hair.
"What are you doing?" he hissed, tensing.
Hidan looked up, looking angry, and said, "What does it look like I'm doing, Dumbass? I'm comforting her."
Kakuzu bit back an angry reply and instead walked over to her, stiffly saying, "Well, you're not needed any more. Please move so I can give her some food."
Hidan's eyes narrowed.
"Fine", he replied tersely, standing up stiffly and leaving the room. Kakuzu waited until he was gone, then knelt next to her on the bed, petting her hair softly and offering a piece of the frozen meat.
Reni sniffed it, and took it carefully, biting through the white wrapping and gnawing on it. Kakuzu watched her eat for a bit, then left the room, heading for his phone.
He called in sick, hanging up the phone and walking back into his room. There was no sign of Reni.
He panicked for a brief second, then calmed and thought to look under the bed, seeing her eyes wide.
She was watching the wall, listening intently to the noises coming through it. Straining, Kakuzu could hear the sounds of a TV, and if he focused, sounds of screaming.
Reni looked toward the noises, backing away slowly. Kakuzu watched with dismay. If this was how she was going to react to everything, they would have to move somewhere in the country. Which would mean he would have to buy a house. And in order to do that….
He would have to start bounty hunting again.
"So, you say you're good at bounty hunting?"
Kakuzu glared at the man before him, Reni at his side.
"I believe that's for me to know, and you to find out. Do you have a job for me, or not?"
The short man looked up at him disdainfully, brow puckered.
"What about the girl?"
Kakuzu looked down at her, saying, "She's one of my partners."
"You have others?"
"Again, that's for me to know."
The man looked angry, but sat down, reaching into a drawer and pulling out a file. He slapped it onto the desk, sliding it across the wooden surface to him.
"If you can get her, I'll consider giving you better jobs. Prove yourself first."
Kakuzu grabbed the file and opened, lightly touching Reni's shoulder to quiet her growl. She looked annoyed, but silenced it, lightly shifting her feet.
He opened the file, and growled himself. This was quite possibly the easiest bounty he had ever gotten.
"What is this, a joke?"
"You won't tell me your name, or your home village, so I'm going to give you a job to see how good you are. I don't expect disappointment."
"A five year old girl could complete this."
"Well, little girl, get moving."
Within two seconds of saying that, Kakuzu shifted his weight to leap forward, but Reni was already flying across the desk, pinning the man up against the wall. Her grip on his throat kept his feet almost a full foot off the floor, and she snarled in his face, baring her teeth in an obvious threat. The man's bodyguards moved forward, but Kakuzu used his threads to restrain them, leaving Reni with her prey.
She grinned, still growling, and slowly sniffed along his neck, and Kakuzu could see the man could tell it was anything but romantic. She used her other hand to slowly trawl up his chest, before plunging her clawed fingers slightly into the skin, making him give a strangled yelp.
Grin spreading, she wiggled her fingers a bit more in the wound, opening it further. The man's pathetic mewls were the only sound in the room, and when Kakuzu decided it was enough, he reached forward and tapped her shoulder before she progressed any farther.
Reni looked back at him, but let him drop, making a face as she stepped back. Kakuzu looked down at the gasping man, sneering.
"So, I'm a little girl?"
"What is wrong with her?" the man wheezed, looking frightened at Reni glaring at him. Kakuzu smiled without emotion.
"She's unique, let's leave it at that. Now, about my mission?"
"Just take whatever one you want and leave me be!"
Reni grinned herself, hearing his defeat. Kakuzu stood up and walked to the desk, picking through the folders until he found one with reasonable pay.
"Thank you for the job", he said, releasing the body guards. The man only looked at them with frightened eyes as they walked out the door, Reni on all fours at Kakuzu's side.
Back in the apartment, Hidan paced nervously, wondering where they had gone. When he had come back from wandering around the village, he had found the rooms empty, no sign of them. He had spent about an hour searching for them, but no one had seen them.
The door clicked open, and his head whirled around, looking at the door. Reni walked in, Kakuzu soon after. A little blood was on the fingers of her left hand, and Kakuzu was looking at her strangely.
"Where the fuck did you go? What was I sup-"
"What did they do to her?"
Hidan shut up and blinked in surprise at the quiet sadness in Kakuzu's voice. The miser's eyes were misted over, looking down at the girl currently licking the blood of her hand.
Hidan was silent for a bit, then asked, "What happened?"
"She was vicious, Hidan. I almost didn't recognize her."
The quiet that followed was almost unbearable, and Hidan finally spoke.
"I don't know. The only thing we can do is try to find her again."
Kakuzu looked up at him, then sighed and walked into his room, Reni following closely at his heels. Hidan stared after them, then sat on the couch, groaning.
The three were in the market place, looking over supplies for the bounty mission. Kakuzu said he knew the area well, so finding the target wasn't going to take long.
A gong sounded, and Kakuzu looked over briefly before returning to haggling, trying to lower the price of dehydrated meals.
Reni looked mesmerized by the sound, and Hidan watched her carefully, keeping a close eye on her. Reni blinked slowly, dazed, then slowly began heading for the noise, nosing her way through people's legs.
Hidan followed her closely, brow furrowed. What was she doing….?
They approached a slaver's wagon, and it was all Hidan could do to throw himself at her to block her lunge.
She snarled and pulled against him, screeching in fury as she was kept from exacting her revenge. While this was not the same group of slavers, the wagons still recalled horrible memories.
Kakuzu suddenly reached down and grabbed her as well, helping Hidan pull her to her feet and lead her away. People looked toward the commotion, curious.
Reni screeched and howled, the sound slowly fading as they vanished from sight.
Kakuzu stood at the gates of Taki, preparing to leave. Reni stood at his side, looking fearfully into the water, and Hidan was slightly behind him, nonchalantly yawning with his scythe on his back.
Kakuzu made sure there departure wouldn't be noticed, knocking out the two guards before they could identify him. He arranged their bodies so it would look like they fell asleep at watch, then turned back to the gates, the sun starting to show over the cliffs. Many people would start awakening soon, so they had to leave.
Kakuzu picked up Reni, and she inhaled deeply before he jumped in, barely making a splash. He could hear Hidan jump in after him, and they swam through the gates, leaving the city permanently.