DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any of its' characters. (Though the OCs are mine.)
Webs of Deception
Chapter Thirty
Chained and in Pain
The silence buzzed in his ears as he stared up at the rocky ceiling. The different shades of brown with areas of black and spots of green. By now, Naruto knew every piece and jagged rock up there. It was basically the only thing he could look at. His neck was so tightly bound to the metal table that he couldn't move his head without pinching the skin located there. But out of the corner of his eye, he did catch what he could swear was lab equipment. Which particularly didn't settle well with him.
He wondered what they planned on doing with him. It was obvious by the equipment that it wasn't going to be pleasant. Actually it was more like common sense. An enemy doesn't kidnapped you and prepare some tea and cookies. No, he expected to be tortured. Yet, that wasn't happening either. He was just lying there. . .waiting. And he hated waiting. He had as much patience as an one inch nail. He wanted them to at least do something. At least then, he would know what to expect. He would know what they were really after. Answers. . .that's something that would be nice to get.
But then again, there was a part of him that kind of hoped they didn't show. Because with each torment received, there was a large chance of not surviving the session. And he just got Sasuke back. He just got the one thing he's always desired back with him and now there was a chance of losing it all. Just when he thought he could be happy, something just had to shatter everything. Isn't that how it always works though. The peaceful calm right before the storm hits. . .
Kyuubi? he called for the fox for the umpteenth time. But yet again, there was no answer from his inner demon. He suspected that it was his restraints suppressing his chakra that had him and Kyuubi disconnect from each other. It was unnerving and made him slightly more nervous to what they had planned.
He shifted as much as he could against the restraints. Groaning in minor pain since his ass was going numb and certain limbs ached from being the same position for so long. Not to mention, he had to pee. Badly.
His bladder was full and he had no way of emptying it. What the hell were those guys thinking? Tying him down with no way of going to the bathroom. Unless that was their way of torturing him. Going through all the struggles of holding it in, only for him to pee his pants. Yeah, that would definitely be the ultimate mortification.
Sighing and shifting again to possibly gain some feeling in his butt cheeks, he grumbled under his breath about the injustice of it all. Leaving a man with no way of going to the bathroom. It was just wrong.
"God dammit!" he yelled out. "If you're gonna do something—just do it already!"
He didn't think those were the wisest choice of words to use at the moment. But it's kind of late to take them back now. A chuckle from the direction above his head resounded through the air, causing his body to tense at the sound.
"Two hours is all you lasted before demanding for some sort of action on our part." said a male's voice in amusement. "Personally, I expected you to last at least another hour."
Two. Hours.
It's only been two fucking hours! Basically, that was the only thing he heard. You got to be kidding me. . . he internally groaned. He would have guessed the time about half a days worth. But two hours. . . Damn. Guess that's what happens when you only have a rocky ceiling to stare at.
Footsteps were heard, snapping him out of his mental rant. "A shame. . ." the man said. Naruto glanced out of the corner of his eye when a figure came into his viewing range. The man appeared slightly taller than him, but it could have been his angle of viewing, with shady brown hair and teal green eyes that only held cold maliciousness in their depths. The man smiled down at him with malice within those upturned lips.
". . .you could have lived a little longer."
Wind and chakra erupted within the confines of the Uchiha mansion's living room, lashing around within a condensed spiral. Sasuke stood with his arms crossed over his chest, appearing to be waiting patiently but inside, he was mentally tapping his foot for every second that it took. Time. . .that was what they were wasting. It took them a near hour just to set up a special kind of transportation jutsu. An hour lost, but he guessed it was better than the alternative of traveling back by foot.
The transportation jutsu of the magnitude they were traveling and the number of individuals they would be transporting required a lot of chakra. A lone person couldn't use it on their own without suffering severe chakra exhaustion. And even with four people offering their chakra to use, it still would put a strain on them all. They weren't willing to risk this when heading to Yuugure, not when there was a possible fight they would be heading into. But now, even with a fight sure to be in the near future, they took the risk—because of one simple answer. It was Naruto.
And that's all that matter to Sasuke; getting the others here and getting his blond back.
Ruri, Gaara, and Shikamaru stood on either side of Sasuke; while Kakashi, Kiba and Sakura stood near the outskirts of the living room. The separateness of the two groups stood out further than earlier, because one group held anticipation of the others arrival while the other group held something akin to fear and dread of more Akuma members' presences.
The circular wind sped up further before it completely dispersed, revealing Itachi, Neji, Miki, Kyoko and Daiki standing there wearing their masks and cloaks. There was a moment of uncertain silence, before Sakura opened her mouth and immediately broke the moment. "Have you join Akuma now too, Neji-san?"
"What are they doing here?" Itachi sneered. Being the first to move from the small group by taking a couple of steps toward the three Konoha Anbu. The movement clearly threatening in every way possible.
"They know about Naruto—" Shikamaru began in drawl tone. But his body was tense and ready to spring if Itachi made any move to strike the three. He may be for Akuma, but he was still part of Konoha and that meant, that he had to help his fellow shinobi from danger. And the aura around the eldest Uchiha spoke of pure danger if he didn't diffuse the situation. Because if Itachi thought the three were here to take them into custody, he would kill every single one of them. "—and are willing to help find him."
Itachi's eyes narrowed upon the three as Miki shouted, "How'd they find out?!"
"It's a some what long story, but—" Shikamaru began but was cut off when Itachi said in a clipped tone. "It's not that important right now. If they can help without getting in our way, then let them. But keep to the rules." The rest of the Akuma members nodded their heads while the others—excluding Kakashi, Kiba and Sakura—who knew of their identities knew what the rules meant. Keep your mouth shut about who they were.
Shikamaru let a long breath out, seeing the threat pass for the time being. He was just lucky that neither Kakashi, Kiba or Sakura argued with the man. Lucky indeed. . .
Itachi stalked past them, only removing his eyes away from them when he entered into the dining room, saying over his shoulder, "Tell me exactly what happened."
Ruri was the first to follow after him with Sasuke following behind her. The other Akuma members and ones close to Akuma trailed lingered near or in the entryway, while the three Konoha shinobi stayed in earshot within the living room. Itachi stopped short though upon entering the dining area. A man, bloody and seemingly disfigured, was tied to one of the kitchen chairs with his head limp against his chest. The obvious signs of being torture clearly visible. His eyebrow quirk and slowly he tilted his head toward Sasuke in question.
"He's part of Ouroboros." Sasuke stated flatly, his eyes focused solely on the man with pure hatred.
Itachi's brows furrowed, his eyes narrowed and his head snapped forward to face the unconscious man. One who took part in taking Naruto. Through the anger rising and dimming his hearing, he vaguely heard Miki shout some sort of profanity at this news. He was ready to smash what was left of the man's face in to hopefully get some answers, but a hand on his shoulder stopped him from taking any sort of action.
On instinct, his hand flinched to break the person's hand, but held back, since the hand belonged to Sasuke. "Don't bother." his little brother told him. "He won't talk."
"Then why isn't he dead?" came his automatic response.
"Because I want him alive. Just in case."
Beneath those last three words, he clearly heard the underlining meaning to them. Just in case Naruto dies, that guy's going to wish the same. He turned back to the unconscious man and smirked. If he thought he was in pain now, he was going to beg for death if anything bad happened to Naruto. And he knew his little brother well enough that he wouldn't give the man the satisfaction of a fast death. No, he would drag it out. Make the other suffer through each torture that Sasuke would put him through.
"Hmn." Itachi grunted in agreement as he moved closer to the table and grabbed one of the scrolls located there, unrolling it and reading what was sealed within. "Anyone going to tell me what happened?" he asked again with irritation, slightly preoccupied in finding what he was looking for.
Ruri was the one who explained all that happened from the point when they entered the Chuunin Exams. All the while, Itachi continued to looked through all the sealing scrolls on the table, until Ruri came to the part about Ouroboros being the reason for Asuka's death and Naruto's 'attacks'. He was almost willing to forget Sasuke claims on the man tied and unconscious and kill him himself for what he was a part of. But he held back, because Sasuke held that right.
Instead, he asked through gridded teeth, "Why do they want the negative chakra?" Forcing himself to remain calm.
"To fix the defected formula." Ruri answered. "Taichou's the first to ever survive the injection with the only symptom being build-ups of negative chakra. They suspect that the negative chakra is the key in fixing what's wrong with the formula."
He growled deep in his throat, a feral beast resisting the urge to lash out at anything. His hand tightened around the scroll in his hand, a fatal hold if he was gripping anything other than an animated item. He forced calming breaths to level his head, releasing the tension in his shoulders by only a little. Tilting his head downward and to the side, he glanced out of the corner of his eye at Sasuke. He wondered how he took this news. How the instability of his mind was taking everything in.
From appearances, Sasuke held the same impassive and cold facade. But if someone looked closely—really looked at him—they could see the muscles in his jaw clenching, his posture rigidly straight, and his onyx eyes holding a garnet tinge in the deepest part of his irises from the restraint he puts on himself. The false calmness his little brother was giving off was really surprising him. Sasuke wasn't the type to take such things calmly. When he's cornered emotionally, he breaks or breaks things around him. Either way, he does something.
Wait, now that he thinks about it, Sasuke did break something. He faced the man unconscious again; the bruises, cuts and gashes evident of the emotional turmoil his younger brother was going through. Throwing the scroll within his hand back on the table, he asked, "Kaku, which scroll holds all the maps we have?"
Gaara brows furrowed in wonder but didn't question it as he turned without a word and left the room to retrieve what the other wanted. Miki was the one who asked, "What'd you need maps for?"
"To find Naruto. What else?" his tone nonchalant as he headed back into the living room.
As he passed, Kyoko spoke for the first time since appearing in the Uchiha house. "How are we suppose to find him with just maps?"
"We're not." he stated with a smirk. "Sasuke is."
Naruto's heart drummed in his chest, beating rapidly from the unknown that the three men, who were just called in, brought with them. They were dressed in hospital garments with gloves covering each of their hands. Their choice of clothing only made him more wary of the situation. Were they going to operate on him? And if so, what were their aims?
He eyed the three move as they walked closer to where he lay. Two of them made a detour to his far left, where he couldn't see because of his inability to move his head. But the sounds of clinking reached his ears. And if his memory served him well, those were familiar sounds of metal instruments being moved from one place to another. The third man walked up to the brunette man standing just over his head. The one who was currently smirking down at him cruelly.
"Are we going to put him under, Sohma-sama?" the doctor asked.
Sohma? So, that was name of the man who appeared to be in charge. He wondered if he was the leader of Ouroboros? Or just a high ranking member? It didn't really matter either way. Because with the way things were going, he wasn't going to have a choice in whether or not they were going to randomly cut him open.
With the sickening widening of Sohma's smirk, he replied, "No. I want him to feel everything that happens."
Naruto huffed and grinned up at the man. "Bring it on bastard." Showing more confidence than he felt. "I can take whatever you dish out."
His grin faltered when Sohma chuckled. "Do you think I'm going to torture you, Kyuubi?" Naruto's grin completely fell then from the combination of the name he was called and the amusement in the man's voice at the apparently misunderstanding of being tortured. But what the hell did that guy expect him to think. He was securely restrained to a metal table and doctors were just about to cut into him. But nooo. . .torture should be the last thing he should expect. Give me break. It was the most logical with the way he was brought to the location.
Sohma walked to the right side of him, the amusement still present on his features. "Foolish—foolish, little fox. I have no intentions of torturing you." The way he said it sent a shiver down his spine. And not a pleasant one either. It was more like someone just scraped their nails across a chalkboard, sending that spine chilling screeches through the air. "You see. . ." he went on, moving his right hand over his chest. He followed the limb, Naruto glaring at the offending appendage as it came closer to him. "I want what's located here." Closing the distance and pressing his finger against his flesh just under his ribcage. Just where the. . . Oh shit.
Light floated above him, blinding him momentarily as panic soared through him like a chakra infused punch right into his gut. Disorienting him and leaving him completely breathless. The one thing they wanted, just had to be the one thing that would surely kill him. For the first time in waking up in this place, he felt fear. And it wasn't just the simple emotion of being scared. . .he was terrified. Completely terrified of the end result that they had every intention of fulfilling. This emotion filled him fully and blocked his ability to hide behind a mask of indifference in front of enemies who got lucky enough to get their hands on him. He knew this by the way Sohma's lips upturned further into a sinister smirk of cruelty.
But this was the first time since his daughter's death that he's ever cared about living or dying. He's always been reckless, not caring about the end result of his choices. But now, he has someone to live for. Someone he's waited years to have, yet was only going to lose once again.
With a dull ring in his ears, he heard Sohma give the three doctors the okay to begin. No. . . he panicked further in his mind at their approaching forms. His struggles against his restraints taking on a new fight to get away from them. But the attempt was useless. Everything was useless. He sagged against the table as the three doctors towered over him. Their meaning behind their presence causing him to let out a small whimper like a young child being scared of the dark.
Because they were bringing him death.
A flash of Sasuke flooded his mind and he felt the sting of tears forming in his eyes at the thought that he'll never see him again. God, he wanted to stay with him. He wanted to prove to Sasuke that he's always wanted him. Always loved him. Never wanting to ever stray from him again.
He found his body trembling from the reality hovering over him.
He was leaving Sasuke alone again. . .
The tears poured over and leaked down the side of his face as he clenched his jaw tightly shut. The sharp pain from the precise incision nothing compared to the pain clawing and shredding his heart.
. . .and again. . .he couldn't say goodbye. . .
The entire room fell silent as all heads turned to Sasuke. Who was standing there just as shocked as everyone else, but it didn't show. Only the furrowing of his brows and slightly lowered edges of his mouth told the others that the words spoken affected him. "How so?" he questioned with no doubt in his voice. But within he couldn't believe in the confidence that filled Itachi's words. How was he suppose to find his dobe when there was absolutely nothing to go on. What the hell was Itachi thinking?
The latter smirked, having this all thought out before even returning to Konoha. "All you need is a deeper connection than a summons." he commented, turning directly to face Sasuke. "A summons connection is only physical; a blood oath. While an Uchiha and their Abikaasa's connection runs all the way to the soul. You might be the only way we'll be able to find Naruto."
"An Uchiha's what?!" Kiba inquired loudly, becoming more frustrated with all this information he just didn't know.
"Hey dude." Miki spoke to Kiba, leaning close to the man. "I have a feeling you're on a need to know basis." his tone flattened as he continued, "So why don't you shut the fuck up."
Kiba and Akamaru growled defensively at the Dragon mask man. His opinion of Akuma was not becoming any less negative with more time he spent with the members. If it was even possible, he was disliking them even more.
Sasuke tried to ignore the animalistic growl that reminded him so much of Naruto. But the sound caused his heart to jump and his breathing to become irregular. It forced the thought of losing Naruto to the forefront of his mind, which also brought forward spasms of pain in his chest. "Then what do I have to do?" he said, ignoring his emotions. He couldn't think about the possible outcome of the situation. "I'll do anything."
"You make it sound like I'm about to ask you to sacrifice something." Itachi said as Gaara reentered the living room with a scroll in hand. He held out his hand without glancing at the Raccoon mask man, and Gaara placed the scroll in his hand. In hurried motions, Itachi performed hand-seals and once the smoke cleared, a circular container filled with long, rolled up parchments stood on the floor. "Sit." he ordered to Sasuke, pulling out several different maps and looking at him, looking for a specific one.
Sasuke did as his brother told him to, though a little hesitantly. He wondered what Itachi was up to—how he was going to use his and Naruto's connection to find the blond? He was anxious yet doubtful all at the same time. Two conflicting emotions that were battling for dominance. His thumb impatiently tapped on his thigh as he watched his brother search through scrolls. Apparently, his anxiousness was currently winning.
After another moment of agonizing time passing and several attempts of Ruri trying to help the eldest Uchiha, Itachi found the map that illustrated all the shinobi continents. He brought it over to Sasuke and unrolled it in front of him, keeping it unrolled with various objects that the others handed him. Sasuke looked down at the map, then looked back up at his brother questionably. Silently demanding the other to tell him what the fuck all of this was about. He was tired of guessing—tired of wondering what was going on and how everything will turn out. He was just tired.
"I want you to pick which continent that you feel Naruto is in." Itachi said like it was the most common thing in the world to say in their kind of situation.
Sasuke stared at his brother for a long moment. He seriously thought that the other was making some kind of joke out of this. "You're kidding me." he said with an edge to his tone. This wasn't the time for fucking jokes.
Itachi was becoming impatient with his little brother. In one swift movement, he grabbed Sasuke's wrist and tugged it forward roughly, glaring mildly at the younger raven. "Close your eyes." Itachi demanded, not letting Sasuke's wrist go. It took only a second of Sasuke staring at him with disbelief before he closed his eyes. "Now relax and concentrate on Naruto."
Relax. . .? Sasuke almost snorted at the thought. He was far from relaxing and much closer to stressful lane. He just couldn't see how this would help find Naruto, but. . .he felt how serious his brother was about all this. Maybe. . .
He found himself rolling his shoulders, attempting to loosen the tension there. If this way holds even the smallest chance of finding his dobe, then hell, he'll try it. It would be faster than searching aimlessly. He felt Itachi pull on his wrist more, closer to the position where he knew the middle of the map would be. "When you're ready, begin moving your hand around until you feel or just know that, that's where Naruto is." he heard Itachi say before releasing his wrist and letting it hover in the air.
Itachi believes this will work. And his brother wasn't the type of person to believe in nonsense. Alright. . . He took deep, calming breaths. Particularly forcing his body to unwind and his mind to stop stressing over every worry that's filling and gradually overloading his senses. To him, this process seemed to have took forever, but when he felt that his body was 'relaxed' enough—his shoulder slouched and his head slightly lowered—he delved deep inside himself, where he believed this connection with Naruto would be.
He fell deeper into himself; the soft, quiet noises and the sense of the place around him faded until there was only the beat of his own heart. The rhythmic beating drifting him further into himself, further into the darkness. A cold and dank darkness that held only pitch blackness like an endless inky river.
Then as suddenly as there was only a cold pitch blackness, a dim flicker of light illuminated the recesses of his mind, spreading its' warmth throughout like a summer breeze. A scent of citrus and lavender mixed in the cool breeze and intimately caressed his skin. Naruto. . . he thought immediately. He inhaled deeply; such a large dose of his dobe's scent had his brain feeling like it was in a drug induced haze.
He pushed the haze from his mind, he couldn't get lost in it as he would have liked. Bringing some sense back to his body, he felt his hand still hovering in the air. He vaguely remembered what his brother said, and he moved his limb slightly to the right. A tightness gripped around his heart when the dim light weakened, heightening the cold that bit into him mentally. He immediately moved his hand back over, finding that comforting warmth once more. Hesitantly, he moved his hand over to his left, reluctant for the cold to return and the warmth of his dobe to be gone.
But the opposite occurred.
His heart jumped when the light grew brighter, taking more of the darkness away. Further to the left, he moved his hand, but stopped when he found the light dim the further he moved away from a certain area. Moving back, the light grew brighter but still the darkness held reign.
"There." his mouth spoke without him consciously knowing it.
Sounds of paper ruffled, and the words his brother spoke—"Give me the map for Cha no Kuni."—sounded as if they were spoken from a distance and not from right in front of him.
The light faded completely, causing him to panic slightly from the sudden cold feeling he felt. The sudden loss. It was unpleasant and unwanted after feeling the warmth and compassion that the light gave off. He wanted it back. Just like its' owner—he wanted it all back. . .
More distant sounds of paper ruffling were heard, then Itachi's voice saying, "All right Sasuke." But the young raven was already searching for that light before his brother was even done speaking. He had to find him. Had to find that connection that would bring him to his dobe. To everything that meant most to him. His world.
It took him less time to locate where the strongest form of light was. It was like something was calling to him, coaxing him to where to find what he'd lost. And he didn't fight against it. He couldn't. Nor did he want to. He let it flow through him, filling him with such raw energy that it left his body feeling tingling all over.
"Here." he said and once again, papers ruffled and Itachi instructed whoever was retrieving the maps to get him the Nagashi region. As all this occurred, Sasuke waited within the cold darkness. The cold biting into his skin worse than before as the tingling within his body faded, leaving him feeling alone and partly abandoned. Small trembles erupted through his limbs from the unexpected force of his emotions. Constricting his chest painfully and making it hard to breath properly.
Just as quickly as his emotions were about to overwhelm him, the light returned dimly as Itachi laid the next map down. That light—that warmth calmed him. It took the pain away and replaced it with that comforting tingle. Heightening the buzz throughout his body as he moved his hand around, seeking out the strongest form of light. As he moved his hand downward and to the left, the light grew like a flood light. The intensity grew, sucking and eating away the darkness in rapid acceleration.
His brows furrowed and he clenched his eyes shut tighter at the intensity of the rays. A futile attempt to block it from his sight. But he pushed forward, his hand continuing what he assumed was eastward. And in a single instant, the light became blinding, forcing his eyes to snap open.
Blurry images and spots of color clouded his vision at first when he first opened his eyes, but after a couple blinks to clear his vision, all the others surrounding him came into view clearly. Each one showing curiosity and anxiousness in various ways and degrees; some with their expressions, others by their body language. He paid little mind to them though, turning his head down to where his hand with his index and middle finger pressing against the map. Kotai mountains. . . Where Naruto was suppose to be. . .
Shallow breaths. . .
. . .in and out—in and out. . .
The feel of the knife slicing and fingers pressing and parting his skin was almost Naruto's undoing. They were so close. Too close to where his death would be released. Tears bubbled at the brim of his ears and his hands gripped relentlessly at the edge of the table. The pain was nothing compared to what he would soon lose. And it wasn't his life that he was most worried about. No. It was Sasuke. He didn't want to lose Sasuke. . .
New shots of pain stopped, leaving his chest with a severe burning sensation and making it hard for him to draw in breaths without causing new pain to be issued upon himself. But that mattered not. His heart jumped painfully into his throat when the sound of metal crashing into metal reached his ears and one of the doctors saying, "We're there." in a gruff voice.
Oh god, oh god. . . His breath hitched, trying to hold in the sobs that threatened to escape his mouth. This small jerk of movements resulted in a new wave of pain to wash through his chest. He didn't want to die. . .not now.
He closed his eyes, the only image behind his lids being of his love. His teme. The tears that brimmed his eyes leaked over and slid down the side of his face. Dreading the expected. But his closed eyes snapped back open and looked to the right at Sohma when the man spoke his name. He was standing to the side, leaning over him intimately. Naruto glared through blurry vision at the amusement sketch over every feature of the man above him. Like his pain was the others' entertainment.
"I have a little secret to tell you before you die, Kyuubi." Sohma said huskily while leaning a little closer to him. "One that—" His grin widened. "—will probably let you rest in peace. Because what's a death if you don't know the whole truth?"
Naruto was confused. What was he talking about? There was no 'truth' that he wanted from this man. But Sohma, apparently, thought otherwise as he leaned even closer to him. Stopping only when he was right by the blond's ear with his hot breath hitting the tan flesh. "You know. . .you smell really good." His finger sliding along the blond's neck.
A growl rumbled in Naruto's throat at the touch. "Don't you fucking touch me." he said through clenched teeth.
Sohma pulled his finger back. "Oh right, Uchiha Sasuke is the only one who can touch the Kyuubi. Or should I say, who you'll allow to touch you." He chuckled against the blond's ear. "But he doesn't matter anymore. He can't save you. Just like before. . .he didn't save you. Nor did he save your precious daughter."
"S-Shut—" Naruto choked out before Sohma quieted him by placing his hand firmly over his mouth.
"Let me tell you though, Kyuubi. That even if Uchiha was there on that day, it wouldn't have mattered. The injection that causes your 'attacks' would still have been issued to you."
In. . .ject. . .ion. Naruto's eyes widened as the words settled into his brain. The meaning behind them took every breath out of him, leaving him feeling so numb. Cold and distance. He killed my baby. . . This one sentence destroyed the numbing fog as quickly as it came—clearing it completely and revealing what was lying just underneath. Hot blooded agony. . . Tears flowed endlessly from his eyes as he took in a shuttering breath, whimpers slipping pass his parted lips.
"That's right, Kyuubi." Sohma continued cruelly. "I killed your daughter." He pulled back then and nodded to the doctor, who now held a large syringe in his hand. The doctor stepped forward, and in one easy movement, he plunged the needle into the sack that held the negative chakra.
An agonizing scream ripped viciously through Naruto's body. Partly it was what began to course through his veins, but mostly. . .it was the anguish of knowing that the person who was responsible for his daughter's death was standing right next to him. . .
. . .and he couldn't do a thing about it. . .
Voices spoke around Sasuke, asking questions that his clouded mind heard no sense in. His brain was not filtering the information so he could understand it. All that he noticed—all that he cared about was the point where his two fingers laid upon the map. Where his dobe possibly was located. His Naruto.
Heaviness spread through his body and a haze clouded his mind like a sedative, with the edges of his vision darkening until all he saw was the Kotai mountains. The tingle that turned into a low hum, burst to life like a wildfire through his veins, burning every cell in him. In the next instant, his sight turned completely white, blinding him in not only vision but senses also. But he didn't feel any sort of panic, he didn't feel anything but the pleasant burning coursing through him.
It was a breather.
A short period in time where he was free from all his worries and all the stress. He felt light—relieved with nothing weighing him down. It was wonderful.
But every good thing comes straight to an end. And this was no different. It didn't seem to have been even a moment before his senses returned and the burning faded into a low hum before fading completely. It tuned him back in to what meant most to him. The reason why he preferred to be weighed down. . .because that idiot is his true happiness. . .
As soon as he got his mind caught up with his body, he soon realized that the others' presences weren't there anymore. He blinked his eyes to get rid of the color spots and focus his vision in the darkened place. Once he reopened them, he found that the living room he previously sat in was now a rocky passageway.
Okay. . .how did this happen? he questioned himself as he glanced around the unknown surroundings. He could have sworn that he was only looking for the location of Naruto. . .
Naruto. . .
He stood, remembering before his daze that he found where his connection lead him to where his blond was. So he's assuming—since assumption is all he has right about now—that somehow he was transported to where his dobe was. Damn, there were so many obscured sections in that simple conclusion, but as long as it led him to Naruto, he wasn't going to analyze it too deeply. He took cautious steps forward, activating his Sharingan to see in the dimly lit tunnel. He tried expanding his senses, but the area felt contorted and he couldn't pinpoint where one sensation was coming from another.
Summoning a kunai from the kanji on his wrists, he continued forward with his feet taking on a quicker pace. He stopped when he came upon a large open space that held three different tunnels. He looked at each one, wondering which one he should choose. Each one held a possibility of leading him to Naruto. But picking the wrong one would only waste time and give the enemy more time to find out of his presence. Which could result in hurting his dobe. And he couldn't have that.
He decided to pick the middle one and was beginning to enter the tunnel, but froze instantly when a scream resounded through the space. A scream that held such agony that it had his blood freezing and his heart frantically beating from terror. Naruto. . . was the only thought running through his mind as he swirled on his heels and entered the tunnel furthest to the right. Where the most terrifying sound came from.
Within four seconds he came upon two men dressed in doctor garments. Fury boiled his blood, coating his vision in red. And in a second—without letting the two realize what was coming—he sliced their throats wide open. Not even wasting the time to see their bodies drop to the ground as he continued to speed forward.
Shortly ahead, a dim light and more yells of pain filtered out into the tunnel. He dashed into the room and stopped dead in his tracks from the scene in front of him. Naruto was strapped to an operating table with his chest cut wide open and convulsing violently. Near his blond, a brunette man and another doctor stood side by side staring at him in surprise. His red-hazed eyes landed on the syringe in brunette's hand and growled, ready to pounce on the bastards for hurting what was his.
The brunette took a threatening step closer to the convulsing blond. The movement was clear enough to register pass Sasuke's fury and it had him frozen to the spot. Fearfully, he glanced to Naruto and in that single instance, he had to use all of his willpower to hold himself back from running to his dobe. To dispose of the people who caused him harm and ensure no more harm came to him. But he couldn't. He couldn't do anything in fear of the man near Naruto. He was helpless.
His hands clenched by his sides as he turned his gaze on the brunette, glaring and desperately praying that he could get to his blond before it was too late. It was apparent that what was happening to Naruto was one of his 'attacks'. An event he feared to witness. And he wasn't wrong in fearing it. The uncontrollable, violent convulsing and the agonizing yells were enough to push him face to face with hysteria. Resulting in his whole body to shake, his muscles twitching to run to his blond, and his breathing to become labored. He never knew how scared he could become when his dobe was this close to death's door.
"Uchiha Sasuke." The brunette spoke calmly, fiddling with the syringe in his hands. "I must say, this is quite a surprise. I never expected you to be able to get through barriers." A pause of prolonged silence occurred. A pause that felt like an eternity to Sasuke. Each second was too long. . . Each second brought Naruto ever closer to death. The corner of his eyes stung heatedly with how much time this was taking.
Too much time. . .
"It doesn't matter though. . ." The brunette continued with a disgustedly demented look. "Kyuubi'll be dead shortly anyway." And that's when he turned, grabbed the doctor by his sleeve and said, "I have a feeling we'll be meeting again, Uchiha. You'll have more than one grudge to settle then, won't you?" Taking a glance to the now quiet Naruto, before settling it back on the young raven. "See you then." Water surged from the ground, wrapping around the two in a whirlpool. And before the water even dispersed—revealing that they were gone—Sasuke was already to Naruto.
The blond was quiet, laying limply against the table with blood oozing out of his mouth and chest. His normally vibrant tan skin was now sickly pale, glistening with sweat and blood. There was so much blood, it was pooled along the table and dripping to the floor. The sickening sound of each drop rang through Sasuke's ears. His stomach was queasy, on the verge of throwing up from the utter terror of the situation. His worst fear. . . He couldn't lose him. . .
His trembling hands rumbled with the latches securing Naruto to the table. The damn shaking wouldn't stop long enough to undo the latch correctly. "Dammit!" he cursed through his inability. This can't be happening. He didn't want this to be happening. He scrunched his face in despair and closed his eyes, tears leaking out of the corners and rolling down his face. Breath. . .fucking breath. . . He was panicking—almost to the point of hyperventilating in his distress. But he couldn't. He had to get Naruto to Ruri before it was too late to save him. If it wasn't already too late.
Balling his hands into fist to loosen the muscles, he tried again. This time undoing the latches around the blond's ankles and wrists. He then went to the one around his neck, unlatching it in less time than the others. Carefully but quickly, he picked Naruto up into his arms, feeling the blond's blood slick and slide along his arms and soak into his clothes.
Just hold on, Naruto. he thought, even though—in the back of his mind—he noticed the lack of Naruto's chest rising and falling. . .
