Chapter 11

With heavy thuds in his head, Neji woke up on a stone floor. For a moment he thought he was still sleeping or having lost his sight, since it was dark in front of his eyes. As soon as he came back to his senses completely, he realized he was tied up and there was also a blindfold in front of his eyes. Whoever had put him in this situation, he knew about his powers. And that made him even more anxious than he could be. As he was wondering about who his captor was, he heard footsteps coming closer to his cell. After some seconds he knew that for some reason, this person knew he had woken up.

It didn't take long before the footsteps stopped, right in front of Neji's cell and then someone spoke.

"Hello Neji." A deep, sinister voice said. There was even a slight slither in his voice.

Neji moved his head up a little as he frowned. This voice.. it didn't sound familiar at all. He never had met anyone with a voice that was so much alike a snake's hiss.

"...Who are you?" He asked. He needed to find out what was going on, for his own sake. He did know that he was in serious trouble.

"That is not of your concern." The voice said. "What is of your concern is that right now, you are being taken hostage. I'm waiting for someone who has a certain liking to you, you see."

Neji was silent for some time, as he sat up with some difficulty.

"Who are you talking about?" He then asked as he was testing his ropes. This was really bad.

"You'll see who I mean. Or maybe not." The voice said and you could hear he was enjoying this. "I want to ask you to be patient and hope for this person to come for you. Otherwise, we might have to hurt you."

"...Don't tell me you're Orochimaru." Neji said, as he came to the conclusion that this must be about Sasuke. Everyone else he knew and who could possibly care about him, were dead. And it was not like he and Kiba had the best bond ever.

"Just pray he will come for you, or things might not turn out too well for the both of you. And I think you wouldn't want yourself 'or' him to get hurt." The person said.

"You're talking like you can't wait for it." Neji said, frowning a little. How did he get into here in the first place? The last thing he remembered that he had been grabbed from behind and that his eyes had been covered, while he was with the group he had been hanging out with for some time.

"No I can't wait for it. He is very important to me you see." The person said. "And Kabuto took you."

"Then those were my questions." Neji said. For now, he just wanted the man to leave. He didn't feel comfortable now that he didn't even know if there was a cell bar between the two of them, how close the man was standing and the fact that he couldn't see any possible attack coming. And the guy being able to read his mind didn't help either.

Suddenly, a cold, slightly moist hand was planted on Neji's cheek.

"Now now, don't be so hostile. I won't hurt you yet." The person said.

Neji immediately got the shock of his life as he jumped and immediately pushed himself backwards, away from the hand that felt like it was dead.

"Don't touch me." He snapped, forgetting his normal calm facade because of the sudden shock he had endured.

The person now laughed a little. It was just as sinister as his voice.

"Don't be scared. It's just a hand." The person said.

"Just go away." Neji said as he moved backwards even more. This person was invading his personal space and he didn't like it one bit. Especially now he couldn't even defend himself. And it was obvious that the guy didn't just want a chat with him during his stay here. He had to be careful. "I don't want you to come closer."

"Don't you now? Sadly enough for you, you don't get a say in this. But I will not hurt you now." The person said. "You just pray your little hero will turn up soon."

"What are you planning with him?" Neji asked, narrowing his eyes behind the blindfold. "I swear, if you hurt him..."

The person laughed again now.

"Yes you would hate that wouldn't you? If only the two of you had stuck together. Maybe this wouldn't have happened." The person said. "I am only planning on getting him back. You see I'm not done with him yet."

"I thought you were just his trainer." Neji said. "Your student wished to leave, you should respect that." Of course there was more to it, but this was as this guy had claimed it to be. It obviously wasn't exactly his role in Sasuke and Orochimaru's relationship.

"He knew what he was getting into when he started. But I will leave you now." The person said. "You just pray and I will see you later. Goodbye Neji." And with that, the footsteps made clear he was leaving.

Neji frowned as he listened to the person departing. He wondered if Sasuke would even notice that he was gone, if he would even know. And if so.. would he come for him?

Later that day, everyone had gathered in the living room. Itachi had called them all together to think of a plan to save Neji. As Sasuke sat down he thought of possible ways to do so. But for them to rescue Neji, they needed to know where he was. And they had no clue besides it was somewhere in the area where Karin lived. Sasuke felt frustrated not even knowing where to go.

"Alright, I think it's best to start this with Karin." Itachi said, giving Karin a nod. "Orochimaru is currently having his base close to your village. The only thing you know is that he was close there, is that correct?" Karin nodded at this.

"Perhaps some of the villagers know where he's hiding." She said. "It wouldn't surprise me, with all those creeps."

"You were living in a city with creeps un?" Deidara asked.

"Well do you think they will tell us? I didn't tell you either right?" Sasuke asked. He wondered if anyone who didn't personally know Orochimaru would know of the place. Criminals mostly hid themselves very well.

"I don't think the chances would be very high they would betray him, if they were friends with him." Itachi said. He then looked to the big blue haired man sitting next to him. "Kisame, you knew Orochimaru, right?"

"Yeah, back in the day, we belonged to the same organisation. He went nuts though." Kisame answered, nodding. "I did learn a lot about him though. Like he lives underground, where it's moist and there are always lots of snakes around the places he is."

"Why didn't you say that before?" Sasuke asked frowning.

"It's not like it would lighten something up before." Itachi said, defending Kisame. "So we should look for places underground. Kisame, do you still have something that could possibly have Orochimaru's scent in it?"

"I don't know." Kisame said. "Maybe the robe I once stole from him." He smirked a little now. "It should be somewhere in the back of my closet."

"That would be great, because then we could go to Karin's village and let Kiba do all the work on finding the snake hole." Itachi said.

"I'll get it before we leave." Kisame said nodding.

"Then what do we do when we find it?" Sasuke asked.

"I think it would be best to just march inside and act like you're returning after a long break." Itachi said. "That way, any possible guards could let you through. Kiba told me that Neji has given him some medicines once, in a piece of cloth that he tore off of his own clothes. So Kiba could find Neji in there as well."

Kiba sweatdropped now.

"Why shouldn't I just follow Neji's scent in the first place?" He then asked.

"...It seems like my mind left me for some seconds, you're right Kiba." Itachi said, letting out a chuckle.

"Yeah, but me bringing in all of you is going to be a little suspicious. That wouldn't make a lot of sense. We can't possibly all go in there." Sasuke said.

"At least take Kiba with you, he can act like he's just your new pet." Itachi said.

Sasuke snorted now.

"You can just all take guard outside, might something go wrong, I'm sure you'll march in anyway." He said.

"We should have at least some ways how to contact each other." Itachi said.

"Maybe we could buy some of those plugs for your ear or something un." Deidara said.

"What?" Kiba asked, obviously never have heard of that.

"Well we can't get them in town, so that means we have to go to a big city.. can we risk that?" Itachi asked.

"I don't know un." Deidara said shrugging. "But how else were you gonna keep contact? None of us are teleporters and we can't connect through our minds and such."

"I could howl when we need help." Kiba said, shrugging. "My howl is very loud."

"Yeah but what if we just can't get out because we'll get spotted? Then your howl will only get us in more trouble." Sasuke said.

"I think that as soon as Kiba howls Itachi will be there, killing everyone." Kisame said, grinning. "Don't worry about that, Sasuke."

"Yeah well a quiet escape would still be better." Sasuke said. "The least people get killed, the better."

"Do you want Neji out as soon as possible or not?" Kiba asked. "And if people get killed, Orochimaru knows to not mess with you."

"He knows not to mess with Itachi. I want him out, but I would like a clean escape. So make sure you only howl when it's really necessary." Sasuke said.

"If you tell me to howl, I will." Kiba said, nodding to Sasuke.

Sasuke nodded back.

"Do we need to discuss anything else? Because I want to go and get Neji out of there." He said.

"I think that's all." Itachi said, as he got up. "So basically, we stay close while you and Kiba go in. When you need help, Kiba howls and we come rushing in. And as soon as you come out with Neji, it's the most important that you and Kiba get out of there as soon as possible with Neji. We'll keep them off and then follow you."

"Right." Sasuke said. "... Maybe Karin should stay somewhere else. You can heal right? Neji might need that."

"That would be smart." Karin said. "I still know some people in the village. We could say we go there."

"Alright. Then can we go save Neji now?" Sasuke asked.

"Let's go." Kisame said, as he stood as well. Everyone immediately did the same, all ready to save the cocky brunette.

At the end of the day, when it was already becoming dark, Sasuke and Kiba had finally infiltrated Orochimaru's hide out. Itachi and the others were hiding and Karin was waiting for them to return a good ten minute run from this bunker. Now it was time to pretend Sasuke had come back and then get Neji out of there. Sasuke was worried sick though, when he saw the hide out. It was familiar, he could remember the smell and the lack of sun in it. His eyes didn't need a whole lot of adjustment to how dark it really was, even with some lights on. But he could also feel that this place would not be very pleasant for anyone. Not even for a few days. Neji was in trouble.

"We need to hurry." Sasuke said, walking fast. He remembered the hallways when he passed through them.

"Get on my back, I'll run there." Kiba said. He got the chills from this place. It was cold, moist and it smelled in there. The darkness was already driving him insane. But Neji's scent got stronger and stronger. He knew they were close, but he also smelled a lot of blood with it as well.

Sasuke immediately got on Kiba's back, who was in his wolf form. Some people looked at them oddly as they passed by, but apparently, they had expected him to come back at some point, since no one said anything.

"Are we close?" Sasuke asked Kiba.

"Just some more minutes." Kiba said as he started running. "But I have to warn you Sasuke... there's blood as well. Lots of it. I just hope it's not all Neji's, this moist air mixed all scents together. It's hard to pick out how much of the blood that's in the area Neji is in, is his."

"As long as he's not dead, he'll be fine." Sasuke said. Neji'd better not be dead. If he was, there was going to be hell to pay. It didn't take long, before Kiba stopped in front of a cell and when Sasuke looked inside, he saw Neji laying on the cold floor. He was bruised, cut up and blood was definitely spilled. Sasuke felt anger rise up. It was a good thing he could use it now to burn down the cell bars. They melted within seconds.

Sasuke then rushed to Neji's side.

"Neji. Get up." Sasuke said, checking if Neji was still breathing.

Neji let out a slight moan, moving his head just slightly, while trying to open his eyes.

"...We should get him out of here as soon as possible." Kiba said. "You two have to sit down onto my back and I'll make a run for it. Let's hope that not too many of them follow us."

Sasuke nodded as he picked Neji up and then sat down on Kiba's back. He looked down at Neji and saw that Neji looked horrible. They had to hurry, all the wounds on his body looked infected.

Just when Kiba turned around and wanted to start running, there suddenly was a person standing right in front of them, leaning against one of the muddy walls in the cell area. The man was paler then milk, looked just as sweaty as everyone else they had seen walking around, but this guy had a confident en especially comfortable look on his face that should be considered abnormal in an area like this. What was even more disturbing, was the smirk that was on the person's face, framed by slick black hair that was reaching the guy's waist.

"Interesting." The guy said, letting out a chuckle right after. Something that normally should be a pleasant sound, now could make people shiver in fear.

Sasuke looked at the guy surprised. He knew who this guy was. The memory of him came back to him instantly as he saw this man's appearance. It was Orochimaru.

"What do you want?" He snapped, holding Neji tighter.

"Nothing in general." Orochimaru said, smirking broadly at Sasuke. "I'm just observing your actions. You must care a lot about the boy hm. I thought you had let go of your emotions completely."

"What do you mean I let go of my emotions completely?" Sasuke asked. He wasn't scared of Orochimaru. If he was perfectly honest, he wanted to hear more. But maybe now he should leave and get Neji better. Neji was more important right now.

"My my, so it was true what Kabuto told me." Orochimaru said, letting out a laugh. "You really lost your memory. Interesting. I never knew 'it' could have that much of an effect. I guess then you're losing your memory once in a while again as well, huh?"

"...Sasuke, we have to go." Kiba said, sounding a little worried.

Sasuke looked at Orochimaru a little longer, but then put aside the fact that Orochimaru just gave him hints that he knew more. Lots more. But they needed to get out and fast.

"Just run Kiba. Go." Sasuke said. He needed to ignore the urge to stay and ask more.

Orochimaru gave them one last smirk as Kiba started running as hard as he could, towards the exit. Orochimaru then disappeared. They were outside in a second, surprisingly enough not being bothered by any of Orochimaru's guards. It was like they didn't care that one of the prisoners was escaping, or they had been ordered to do nothing.

Once they reached Itachi and the others, Sasuke made Kiba stop for just a second. "We need to hurry as you can see, will we meet you later?" Sasuke asked. He didn't want to have Neji wait for some healing.
"Sure, just hurry." Itachi said, nodding, and he and his group immediately head off.
Sasuke and Kiba rushed off as well. All Sasuke could do now, was hope Karin could get Neji fixed up. And all he could hope for was that his memory would come back, without having to go back to Orochimaru. Because if it wouldn't, the only person left to turn to, would be him.

The next morning, Neji woke up, feeling immensely comfortable - the opposite of how he had felt during the last days. After the torture he had endured and being used to sleep on the cold floor, the soft and warm bed he woke up in welcomed him in a very pleasant way. And when he opened his eyes he saw something even more pleasant: there was a handsome raven sitting next to his bed.

Said raven, didn't notice Neji was awake again, until he directed his head to look at him and found bright white eyes staring at him.

"You're awake." He said, quickly letting go of the hand he had been holding.

"...Good observation." Neji said with a hoarse voice, letting out a slight chuckle.

"Shut up Neji." Sasuke said, but smiled anyway. "How are you feeling?"

"Sore, but better than before." Neji said. "...Thanks for getting me out of there."

"Who says I did that." Sasuke said and looked at Neji. He then softly grabbed his hand again. He might as well just go for it.

"..I saw you." Neji said, as he moved his head back a little. "You told me to wake up."

"..Oh so you did notice that." Sasuke said. "Do you remember anything after that?" He didn't want Neji to know he had met Orochimaru.

Neji shook his head now.

"I guess I passed out not long after." He answered.

"Ok. Well we got out as you can see. Karin healed you." Sasuke said.

"...How did she get here?" Neji asked, frowning slightly as he tried to sit up. He still felt very sore, but he was sure he could do this.

Sasuke helped him sit up and put a pillow behind Neji's back.

"When Kiba and Karin saw you getting kidnapped, they left to get me." Sasuke said. "We're in her old hometown."

"How did you find Orochimaru's base?" Neji asked as he put the covers over himself.

"Long story. We found out where there are snakes, Orochimaru is. And Kiba smelled you." Sasuke said.

"…Right." Neji said, nodding. "Smart move to use Kiba for that."

"Yeah well none of us have that nose." Sasuke said, grinning. "You know, I found someone very important when I left."

"...Who?" Neji asked, looking at Sasuke.

"My brother." Sasuke answered. "Apparently I have one."

Neji furrowed his brows now.

"You're lucky, how did you meet him?" He asked. "How is he?"

"He's... great." Sasuke admitted. "He told me we were best friends before I left. I never told him where I was going."

"Do you know why you never told him?" Neji asked, frowning a little. "And how did he cope with you leaving?"

"I don't know why I didn't tell him. He told me I used to be jealous of him. He was better at everything. Maybe that's why." Sasuke answered. "And actually... I don't know how he was coping. I do know that now, he has two boyfriends."

"...Perhaps he has those boyfriends because he missed you so much?" Neji asked, after a short silence.

"I don't know..." Sasuke said. He never even thought of that. "... He told me my mother died because I left."

"..And your father?" Neji asked, a little worried now.

"Died from a broken heart. I guess I killed him too. Or at least that's how it feels to me." Sasuke answered. Even though he had no clue who his parents were, it wasn't the nicest thought that because he left, they had died.

"You could never know that would happen Sasuke.. I can't imagine you were cruel enough to leave while knowing your parents would die from grief." Neji said, as he shook his head. "It's sad to hear they died, but you can't help that."

Sasuke shook his head.

"Doesn't mean it doesn't feel like that. From everything I've heard so far, I must have been a pretty rotten person." He said.

"Have been yes, but you're not anymore." Neji said. "Never heard of that you have to learn of the mistakes in your past?"

Sasuke looked at Neji now, frowning slightly.

"Since when do you think positive things about me?" He asked.

"...I have been thinking in that cell." Neji said, shrugging. "..I have to stop with judging you. I noticed that I missed you, and I missed you for you. I didn't miss someone who comes close to my expectations, but I missed 'you'. I won't judge you anymore, nor try to change you."

Sasuke looked at Neji some more now and then smiled slightly.

"... Thank you." He said. "I missed you too. I was worried."

"In the end there was no reason to." Neji said, smiling a little. "I'm alright now."

"Yeah but just because we got the chance to save you." Sasuke said. He stroke some of Neji's hair out of his face.

Neji nodded as he kept looking at Sasuke.

"I wonder why Orochimaru chose to kidnap me out of all people to get you..." He said.

"Because he knows that right now, I care about you the most." Sasuke said, speaking softer then normally.

Neji was silent as he looked at Sasuke, whose hand was still in his hair. He then softly grabbed Sasuke's hand with his own.

"...Kiss me Sasuke." He then said.

Sasuke really didn't need to hear that again, as he moved closer and put his lips on Neji's. For some reason, right now, they were more comfortable with each other, then they had been ever since they met.

Neji immediately leaned in and put a hand under Sasuke's chin, cupping it so he could kiss Sasuke deeper. As his eyes fluttered closed and he sighed in comfort, he realised the same as Sasuke had just done. They blended together perfectly right now. Probably because Orochimaru out of all people had confirmed that there was more between the two dark haired boys then just friendship, and because of Neji's statement of not wanting to judge Sasuke anymore. They accepted each other.

Sasuke started prying open Neji's mouth with his tongue and made the kiss even deeper. He softly grabbed Neji's head and let his thumbs stroke Neji's cheeks.

Neji let out a slight moan as he let go of Sasuke's chin and grabbed a fistful of Sasuke's hair. He then obeyed Sasuke by opening his mouth and allowing the other's tongue in. This was not their first kiss, but for Neji it felt like it was. This was the first kiss they shared out of appreciation for each other, and wanting to be as close to each other as possible.

They kissed like that for a long time, in which Sasuke just couldn't pry away from Neji. At some point though, he had to pull away for some air. Sasuke kept his eyes closed and kept holding onto Neji's head.

Neji was silent as he breathed onto Sasuke's lips for some time, before leaning back in and kissing Sasuke again. He couldn't let go of Sasuke right now. He wanted to be close to him. Really close.

Sasuke let out a soft moan as he felt Neji's lips on his again and kissed back immediately. He inched even closer, this time entangling his fingers in Neji's hair. He could feel his own heartbeat speeding up.

Neji let his tongue move around Sasuke's, taking in Sasuke's taste and loving every second of it. He brought Sasuke close to him. Words were not needed for what they were doing. They both knew.

To get even closer to Neji, Sasuke sat down on the bed. He was leaning over Neji now. He could stay there forever if it was up to him.

As they kissed longer, they got more and more lack of air. It was Neji this time who broke the kiss, and then just brought Sasuke close to his chest, holding him close.

Sasuke softly wrapped his arms around Neji, letting his head rest in Neji's neck and sighed. It was hard to believe they could be this comfortable after all that had happened before.

Neji let out a chuckle now.

"Seems like there are some feelings I didn't know I had for you." He said.

Sasuke laughed a little now.

"Guess so." He said. "Are you willing to try now?"

"I am." Neji said, nodding, as he looked at Sasuke. "Are you?"

"Of course I am." Sasuke said, and smiled slightly. "My brother told me I needed someone calm."

Neji then smiled broadly.

"He knows you very well." He then said.

Sasuke looked at Neji now, who was smiling like that for the first time.

"... You should smile more often." He said, mesmerized by how good this made Neji look. Even better then he usually looked.

"I'll smile more often when you're with me." Neji said, as his smile dropped just slightly, but now mixed with a soft look in his eyes. "I only smile when I truly feel happy."

Sasuke was the one smiling now.

"Then I'm glad you just did." He said and put his fingers through Neji's hair.

Neji now gave Sasuke a teasing look.

"Wait until you hear me laugh." He then said.

Sasuke laughed slightly.

"When do you do that then?" He asked. "I want to know what I need to do to make that happen."

"That would ruin the fun, wouldn't it?" Neji asked. He gave Sasuke a slight smirk before pulling him close to his chest again.

Sasuke let out another laugh and pulled Neji closer.

"I'll just have to find out then." He said.

"I guess so." Neji said. "I'm curious to meet your brother. Do you want to tell more about him?"

"Sure." Sasuke said. "His name is Itachi and he looks a lot like me. On the outside that is though. I guess he's a lot smarter and a 'lot' calmer then I am."

"Is he as calm as I normally are?" Neji asked. "And don't say things like that.. you don't know how smart he is yet, right?"

"He sounds a lot wiser then I do." Sasuke said. "And I think he might be even calmer. Believe me, if you met his boyfriends, you will see how much calmness and patience he must have."

Neji chuckled a little at hearing this.

"What are 'they' like then?" He asked.

"One of them is very tall and big and looks somewhat like a shark. And I swear, he's always horny." Sasuke said. "The other one is far too loud and puts 'un' after every sentence and he's always whining about something. I can't imagine anyone who can cope with that."

"So is your brother the seme or the uke?" Neji asked, already admiring this guy. He would get crazy if he would have to be in a relationship with people like that.

"... I don't know. Maybe both? God I don't even wanna think about that." Sasuke said, putting up a disgusted face.

Neji chuckled at seeing the expression on Sasuke's face, and then shook his head.

"Ukes are mostly whining, big guys that look horny all day long must be semes." He then said. "Perhaps your brother adapts to both indeed."

"Yeah... so he's both. Maybe they even do threesomes... God why did I say that?" Sasuke said. "You know I caught them all naked in bed together once. Thank god they were sleeping."

Neji laughed now.

"You're like a little kid who doesn't want to know his parents ever had sex." He then said. "The thought of a threesome is not that bad, right?"

Sasuke looked at Neji a little startled now.

"...You're laughing." He said. "And you don't want to have a threesome right?"

Neji snorted.

"Scary, right?" He asked. "A threesome is something to try once. I have no idea how it would be. Wouldn't you want it?"

"No. Because that would mean someone would either be fucking me, or someone else would be having sex with you." Sasuke said. "And I don't want either of those options to happen."

"So you think I could only be an uke then?" Neji asked, as he sat up, a little more interested than before.

"Well.. yeah." Sasuke answered nodding. "You don't really seem like a seme to me."

"Why not?"

"Because you don't seem like you would take control." Sasuke said shrugging.

Neji snorted a little upon hearing this.

"Forgot that my best ability is to take over someone's body?" He asked. "You have seen nothing of me taking control. We only had sex once, and there you took my virginity, so I focussed only on the feelings."

"Yeah well still." Sasuke said. "Besides, you strike me as a person who likes it too much to be pleasured back there to give it up for some control." He smirked a little.

"I think 'you' strike me as a person who likes the thought of putting your cock back there, so don't make excuses." Neji said, once more letting out a chuckle.

"Well that too." Sasuke said, laughing. "But I still don't think you would be seme."

Neji shrugged.

"Just kissing someone is fine with me already as well." He then said. "And touching."

"But I still don't want to have a threesome, because you see, you kissing someone other than me is really not a turn on." Sasuke said.

Neji laughed a little once more.

"I can understand that." He said.

"And the thought of my brother having a threesome with dumb and horny is making the thought of threesomes even worse." Sasuke said grinning.

"I can imagine." Neji agreed, still laughing.

Sasuke laughed too and then gave Neji a kiss.

"You think you can come downstairs with me so you can eat something?" He asked.

"That would be great." Neji said, nodding . "But you have to help me if we need to go down some stairs."

"We do, but I'll help. I want you to meet Itachi and I want you to eat. I'm sure they either didn't give you anything or they gave you crappy stuff." Sasuke said as he started helping Neji out of bed.

"They didn't give me anything no, except for water, thank god." Neji said, while putting his legs on the ground.

Sasuke slowly pulled Neji up and held him up as well.

"I'm sure Karin will prepare a feast when you get down." He said.

Neji chuckled as he shrugged on a robe that was put over the end of his bed.

"Did they miss me?"

"I think they did. They were really worried." Sasuke said.

"Good to hear." Neji said. "Seems like we found ourselves some good friends Sasuke."

"I guess so." Sasuke said nodding. "Now let's get downstairs, cause I'm starving too." He helped Neji walk out of the bedroom. It was really funny how they had left each other after an argument, and now they were in a relationship. Sasuke couldn't complain though. Neji was really everything he could have hoped for.