Chapter 10-
Hinata wobbled her way back up the path to where Naruto and Sasuke had last been. She'd won the fight, but she'd taken a pretty heavy beating herself. Moreover she was disturbed by the absence the shinobi (particularly Naruto's). Where were they? That's when she heard a familiar sound.
"Arf-Arf!"
She turned around to smile at her friends. Kiba on Akamaru, was arriving with Shino. They stopped in front of her, and Akamaru gave Hinata a lick on her cheek. Shino was looking her over for possible injury.
"Are you alright?" he asked.
"I'm fine. We need to find Naruto."
"That's why we're here." Kiba exclaimed as he hopped off the large dog. "Hinata you ride Akamaru. We'll be right alongside you."
Hinata didn't have time to protest. She was gently lifted by the caring hands of Shino, who placed her atop the bowed canine, eager to receive his new rider.
"There is no time to waste." he declared. He took of his shades, and placed the ANBU mask over his face. Then he replaced the pitch-black lenses. "Let us find our comrade."
"His scent leads this way." Kiba yelled dashing in the direction Hinata had been headed. The others followed.
Naruto stood on the red soil. Surrounded by rocks, cliffs, and dead shrubs. The problem was he didn't know how he'd gotten there. One minute he was charging forward ready to protect Hinata. The next thing he knew he was in a completely alien world.
All the trees of the forest had vanished, and suddenly he was in the middle of a rocky desert. The ground was reddish brown, and the sky somewhere between indigo and purple. The sun and the moon were both high in the sky at opposite ends. The sun was like a black light, and of course the moon reflected this light in an iridescent glow. The air was breathable; but only just so.
Naruto had tried calling out to someone. He had looked all around for Hinata and Kanaye, or for Sasuke. There was no one else there except him. Still he couldn't help but get the feeling that he was being watched. He picked up a rock and threw it with all his might.
The rock whistled through the air, and he watched it disappear from his sight; only to see it reappear from behind with that same whistle in the air. He caught the rock and then let it drop to the ground. He didn't like this. Something wasn't right. He began to steady his breathing.
He stood stone still with his eyes closed, putting his hands together. He focused. Concentrating heavily upon the immense resource of chakra he possessed. He took a few more breaths, and then he completely shut off the flow of his chakra. Then after a moment, he released it again, surging like a locomotive.
Nothing happened. He was still in the strange place.
"Just as I thought." He said to himself. "This isn't a genjutsu."
But what was it?
Sasuke wasn't sure what had happened. One minute he had been watching his best friend race to the aid of the woman he loved, the next he was standing in the sky. He was looking below and saw a place he never really wanted to see again- The Valley of the End. The place where he had irrevocably made a fateful decision. And he was watching himself make that decision all over again.
"No." he whispered.
Somehow he was trapped in a genjutsu. It shouldn't have been possible. Not anymore. But here was the proof. He was watching himself all those years ago, in the fight with Naruto.
He watched everything he had done. Heard everything he had said. All those years ago. He watched as he insulted Naruto; taunted him. Tried to kill him.
"Stop it, you fool!" he screamed at the young man beneath him. But he went unheard. "Don't do this! You can go back! You can make it right!"
It didn't matter. He watched in horror as his younger self released his transformation. The giant hands that grew from his back. His hair turning white. His eyes turning black.
Then it all changed. Suddenly he wasn't in the valley. He was back in Konoha.
'Did someone break the jutsu?' he thought to himself. Then he saw where he was, and knew different.
He was back in his home. His old home, and standing right in front of him were his parents... and Itachi. Sasuke wanted to close his eyes, but somehow he couldn't. Once again he was forced to watch his parents murder. He looked on in horror as the blade pierced his mother's neck.
Then once again, everything changed. Over and over, Sasuke watched his worst possible moments. Moments of pain. Moments of sadness. Moments of regret.
All the worst things that were done to him. The worst things he had done. At first it was one after the other. Then they began to blend together. It was like watching a montage of your absolute worst.
It didn't end with sights and sounds. All his senses were affected. Over and over he felt every last sensation. The smell and taste of blood, the feel of his punches and kicks in his fights, and the physical pain when he had been beaten. All of it in a continuous loop.
This genjutsu was pain. Pain in its purest form, and Sasuke had no way out of it. He couldn't focus. He couldn't concentrate and break free. Every fiber of his being had been invaded, locking him away in this world of pain.
When Gaara had closed his eyes, the last thing he saw was the concerned face of Matsuri. She was holding onto him in the fight. When he collapsed she held him close to her, and that's when his eyes had shut. When he first opened them again, he thought only a few seconds had passed. In truth it was much longer than that.
Gaara was asleep for three hours. For him that was more than enough time to be well rested. He never did sleep much, even now. He looked to the side and found Matusri sleeping rather soundly in chair by his bed. She had a small speck of drool on her loop.
Gaara found this both amusing and endearing. He almost didn't want to wake her... but he had to.
"Matsuri..." he gently called out.
She woke up instantly. "Gaara...sensei." Her face had a twinge of pink on her cheeks. "You're up!"
"Hai. Is everything alright?" He stood up, and looked for his shirt. Someone had removed everything except his pants.
"H-hai." Her pink cheeks flushed a little more at the sight of his bare chest. "They said you simply needed sleep. Temari is returning to Konoha with the task-force you had ordered to assemble. They will provide whatever aid possible."
He nodded, and finished getting dressed. Matsuri, seeing that he was leaving the room got up to follow. before he opened the door, he paused for a moment. "Matsuri... arigato."
"I don't understand it." Kiba just looked around staring blankly. "This is right where he should be. His trail only goes back in the direction he came from."
"What could have happened?" Hinata asked with a worried look in her voice.
"Could an enemy have masked his scent?" Shino inquired.
"...Possibly..." Kiba thought. "...but not likely. Akamaru and I would probably have picked up on that little trick and followed the new scent. If that got screwed up, we could still pick up the scent of whoever might have done that to him. There's no trace of either."
"So you can't smell anything?" Hinata looked around for herself, still seated on Akamaru. The humongous dog whined in apology.
"Not a thing." Kiba looked at her incredulously.
"Keep trying." Shino ordered. "I will attempt to locate Uchiha."
His bugs flew from their hive within their master, and obeyed his command. This command was supposedly an easy task for them. "Find Uchiha."
He didn't have long to wait.
They heard a sudden scream echo through the trees. Shino recalled his beetles and they ran further up the path, to find Sasuke right where Naruto had left him. But it wasn't how Naruto had left him. Sasuke was writhing on the limb of his tree. His was face contorted into something barely human.
The four them observed the scene in horror. Hinata had to look away for a moment. She placed a hand over her mouth to choke back sob. Yes, she had some hostility towards the raven-haired shinobi for what he had put Naruto through. But Naruto had forgiven him and that was enough for her.
Whatever Sasuke may or may not have done he didn't deserve this. She collected herself as Shino finished examining him. Her masked friend stood up and crossed his arms.
"How odd."
"What is it?" Hinata asked.
"Something I didn't think was possible. He's trapped in a genjutsu." Shino replied.
"Are you serious?" Kiba looked down at Sasuke in awe.
"Very." Shino replied. "And I cannot wake him."
"Naruto..." Sasuke whispered. His voice was soft and painful. It held regret.
Hinata looked at him. 'The past is past.' she thought to herself. 'And he needs us now.'
She slowly climbed down from Akamaru's back, with a little assist from Kiba. She then knelt beside Sasuke and took his hand.
Something changed. Inside Sasuke's mind he could feel something different. A distraction from his own personal hell. A soft, warm, and comforting presence. A presence not really meant for him.
He began to collect himself. His mind was slowly becoming his own again. "Who is that?" he called out.
Back in the real world, Kiba and Shino had bent themselves over Hinata and Sasuke in wonder. The Uchiha just spoke. Hinata was somehow affecting him. Kiba clapped her softly on the back. Shino observed Sasuke more closely.
"Again." he ordered.
"Yeah, Hinata. Say it to him again." Kiba egged on.
Hinata pulled Sasuke further up onto her lap and bent her head to speak into Sasuke's ear. "Uchiha Sasuke. Wake up. Naruto is in trouble. He needs you."
There came a stronger reaction. Sasuke squeezed Hinata's hand. "Na...ruto!"
Inside the mind of Sasuke, the young boy's thoughts were beginning to clear. He still saw the horror's of his life, still felt all the physical pain. But he had felt something else as well. And now he heard something. Naruto was in trouble.
'Not again...' Sasuke resolved. 'I won't let anything like this...' he looked one more time at the montage of hell. '...happen again!'
Inside the illusion he had closed his eyes. He gathered his strength and focused. "SHARINGAN!"
When he opened his eyes again, it was in the real world with... "friends" looking down at him with concerned faces. He stood up immediately letting go of Hinata's hand. He looked around to assess his bearings and then turned back to Hinata. He offered his hand to her and politely helped her back up.
"Where's Naruto?" he asked.
At the same time, Naruto had been sitting down for what seemed like hours. He refused to move and waste any more energy. Sooner or later the person responsible for this would show up, and then he'd deal with the problem. In the meantime he had to figure out what was going on. So he closed his eyes and began dove into his subconscious.
Once again Naruto was in the tunnel way that passed for his... well he wasn't sure what it was, but it was right where he wanted to be. He made his way down the hall and took all the familiar turns. In no time at all he had arrived at his destination. He stood before the great gates to the prison of his soul. When nothing stepped from the shadows of the cell, he addressed his prisoner.
"Oi! Kitsune no baka! Get out here!"
A loud chuckle came from the cage. What do you want, whelp?
"Answers." Naruto simply stated.
What could I possibly tell you? the fox teased.
"Bullshit." Naruto remarked. "You're a damned demon. You've lived hundreds of years. You've gotta know something about this."
Kyubi just yawned. Why should I tell you anything.
"Out with it, freeloader!"
Kyubi let slip his dark sense of humor once more, as he made his way to the front of the cage.
Matsuri followed Gaara down the corridor. The girl was unusually loud this time. She was vehemently opposed to what Gaara was preparing to do, and had been trying to persuade him against it the entire time they were in his home. While all of this was going on, the two witnesses to the scene waited quietly outside the front door. At this point it was none of their business.
She had given him every feasible reason for him not to go. He had only just finished a battle. His chakra hadn't had sufficient time to replenish. His body wasn't at a hundred percent. They still needed to clean up the mess from the battle in Suna.
Gaara listened to her without saying a word. He just kept packing his things, and checking to make sure he had everything. That was his way of of saying, "No." He intended to carry out his plan. He threw on his red long coat and armor, and began to walk out the door.
"Why aren't you listening to me?!" Matsuri finally screamed.
Gaara stopped. Without turning around he gave his reply. "I have heard every word you said. I appreciate your concern. My friend is in trouble. I'm going."
Gaara made his way downstairs, and went out the door. The sand siblings began to walk down the path toward the gates of Suna. They were stopped when they heard the footsteps of someone making their way to them from behind. Matsuri moved past the group and stood directly in front of Gaara. She looked him dead in the eye.
"Gaara..."
A moment of silence. 'Come on, Matsuri. You can do it.'
Gaara looked down into her eyes. "Hmm?"
"..." Matsuri stood there silently. Trying to say those desperate words, tears starting to form in her eyes.
Kankuro leaned against a wall. "This is it girl. Now or never. We don't have all day."
"Gaara..." She looked up at him, tears rolling down her cheeks. The tension was incredible- at least for Matsuri. It took so long for those words to come out. When they came it was like a kick start for her entire body. "I LOVE YOU!" she screamed.
The moment she said it, she launched herself into Gaara and embraced him. She began to softly cry into his chest. "I love you..." she softly whispered. "I want to spend the rest of my life with you..." she sobbed. "...have children with you."
Kankuro coughed and averted his eyes from the scene. Temari was blushing, holding her hand to her face trying to hold back a nosebleed.
"Matsuri..." Gaara whispered to her.
"How can we do that if you're DEAD?!" she pleaded.
Gaara looked down at the woman. Her presence and concern continued to be a calming, reassuring one for him. He put his arms around her and let her cry into his chest. When she quieted down he tilted her chin to look at him.
"If he hadn't risked his life to save me, I would not have you to love me..." He leaned in and softly kissed her. Nothing elaborate. Onlookers might not even call it 'passionate'. But for Matsuri, it was earth-moving.
"We owe him. I cannot abandon my friend."
Matsuri held on to Gaara. Heartbreaking as it was, this was part of the reason she loved him.
"You have five minutes to gather your things. If you're not back we will leave without you."
Having succeeded in waking Sasuke, the group went back to the point where Naruto's presence vanished. Explanations having been given along the way, Sasuke immediately activated his sharingan for a brief look around. He'd had just enough chakra left to take a brief look around. Nothing more. And that's exactly what they found.
"Not a single trace of him beyond this point." Sasuke shut off his kekkai genkai.
The four humans and one large dog sat on their respective perches. The was a low sound of breathing which accompanied an even lower mood. Things were looking very grim, and they needed a way out of this. Something to help it all make sense.
The answer came from Sasuke. "Shino. You'll have to make a report."
"Hai." he replied.
"Maybe it's time to get our facts straight, before returning. It might give us an idea about what to do next."
"But Naruto is still missing. How can we..."
"Calm yourself Hinata. I have not forgotten him. We don't know what's going on. It may be beyond our help. If so, the more specialized Jounin will come. If not, we may then know what to do because we will have learned what the problem is."
"The problem is Naruto's missing, and his girlfriend's worried sick!" Kiba growled on Hinata's behalf. The poor girl turned crimson.
Shino had his bugs act as characters for his notes in the air. 'Naruto missing.' "That's main problem. What are the factors? When did he disappear? How? Who might have done it? If he's in trouble how do we bail him out?"
"He disappeared right when Kanaye was attacking Hinata." Sasuke chimed in. "That's all I know.
Shino made a note with another set of bugs. "What else is there?"
Kiba turned to look at his friend. "Come to think of it. We never saw Kanaye's body. Hinata's the only one."
"What?" Hinata and Sasuke said together.
"That's true..." Shino said darkly. His bugs made another note.
"We should go investigate the scene where the two of you fought Hinata." Sasuke looked at her.
"I wouldn't bother." came a voice.
Kanaye came to as he felt a sudden pain from a jerk of his body. He opened his eyes to see that he was being dragged along the ground, pulled by his clothing. He looked up to see a stranger. A foreigner. Dressed mostly in red and carrying two war maces, the man was grumbling as he pulled him along.
"What is this? Where are you taking me?" he demanded.
"Shut up. You want to live or not?"
Kanaye thought about that. He wanted to live, but not if it meant putting Konoha in danger. "Who are you?"
"I said SHUT UP!" He lifted Kanaye off the ground and grabbed his throat, holding him in front. "Maybe you DO want to die, ne?" He begin to squeeze. Kanaye's eyes were literally bulging from their sockets.
He continued to move through the woods, carrying Kanaye along. His grip remained on the young man's neck, endangering his life further. A few more yards further, and they were greeted by a man in black... and someone very familiar.
"I hope you're not treating our new ally badly, Gekido. I'd hate to have to punish you for any rambunctiousness."
The man in red, Gekido, dropped Kanaye to the ground. At this point the young man was breathing heavily, and not from the strangling grip of his "savior." It was clear that his mangled body was in increasingly worse shape. His chakra was visibly erratic; bursting and dissipating. Like a light bulb about to short out.
The man in black leaned down and examined his captor. Now out of the shadows, and leaning in close to Kanaye, the young man could see his exact manner of dress. He was garbed in a black Cheongsam, with white toggles. His hands were gloved, and he wore a head wrap concealing his hair. The wrap also served as a binding to keep the mask over his face in place.
Kanaye wanted to get away from this man; both men. Unfortunately he was paralyzed, bloody, beaten, and dying. He couldn't move if his body had wheels. He was stuck there listening to these dark men. Knowing that one way or another, his time was up.
After a long stare, the man in black stood up. Gekido looked at him, with that permanent frown on his face. "Well what is it, Zōo? What's the verdict, ne?!"
"Our predictions were correct. He is just what we were looking for." Zōo walked down a path through the woods.
"Sucks to be you, kid." Gekido grabbed Kanaye by his foot and dragged him along. His face was scraped against the ground.
As he was dragged along he could hear the black-garbed man speak through the opera mask. "I want to take this time to thank you. You will be of great use to us. Now please try not to struggle. It will go much faster if you simply comply."
Gekido hurled the Kanaye forward, past Zōo. He landed with a slight roll, bringing his feet over his head and landing face up and able to see the fate that awaited him. He was absolutely horrified. What stood before him was something no mortal man could put into words. It nearly destroyed his man to look upon it.
"Wha-What IS that thing?!" He cried.
"Believe me, young man. You don't want to know." Zōo said, as he turned and walked away.
Gekido stayed to watch. Whatever the thing was... it began to shift. Large, gray tentacles began to protrude from its sides and slithered their way to Kanaye. The young ninja was now in absolute panic. Despite the condition of his body, he twisted around and tried to pull himself away from the horror before him.
There was no way he could be fast enough. His foot had been caught by one of the tentacles, and it tightened its grip. Kanaye screamed as he was pulled back.
"No!" he cried. "Nooooo!" His screams fell on deaf ears.
Soon his entire body was wrapped by the sticky appendage. He was lifted into the air, as his final screams for mercy were stopped when his mouth was covered. He continued to cry out through the muzzle with wide, fearful eyes. No one could hear him. He was pulled down towards the the great mass that was the body of this... thing.
He couldn't even struggle. His pointless fights from earlier had seen to that. Paralyzed and helpless he watched as the thing from nightmares shifted again. A large protrusion reached for him now. The tentacle unwrapped him as this newly developed feature engorged him- feet first.
Little by little he was swallowed by this thing. He was further fed to monstrous being and eventually completely engulfed. The tentacles disappeared as his muffled screams continued inside the flesh of the gray-green horror. His silhouette could be seen in the semi-translucent proboscis. He cried out as his body began to slide down towards the center mass.
The silhouette revealed layers being removed from Kanaye as he continued down the path laid out for him. These layers were revealed to be his clothes as they were regurgitated and then dissolved on the ground. Kanaye finally gave out one last, audible scream as the silhouette disappeared into the center mass. The proboscis retracted and the massive thing, shifted again; burying itself beneath the dirt.
Gekido frowned as he walked away. "Good shows never last long enough." he remarked.
Author's Section
Gross, huh? I decided to end the chapter there, just because of how dramatic that seemed. I couldn't think of a better way to end it, so why bother? Instead I'll cover what happens in the next chapter. Thanks again for reading. Now you know what to do.
-bakagaijin
P.S. Here's an image of what Zōo's mask looks like. and a link to his articles of clothing.
again.
