Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto
Chapter Two
As I slowly regained consciousness I became aware of a lot of voices around me that I didn´t recognized. I opened my eyes and quickly realized two things. One, I was in a bedroom I´ve never seen before and two, I was surrounded by strangers. I panicked. I screamed and tried to get away from them, curling up against the headboard of the bed I was on. Suddenly the door flew open and an angry voice yelled.
"Get out of here! Can´t you see that you´re scaring her!?" The strangers left the room and only the person that had yelled at them was left. It was Sasori. He stood tall and proud but his gaze was filled with worry and regret. He had become quite muscular but his wild, blood red hair was the same, as well as his warm brown eyes. He was dressed in all black, black boots, black cargo pants and a black t-shirt. "Sasori…" My voice broke but he heard me and slowly walked up to the bed and sat beside me. "I´m here now Sakura, sorry it took so long." I felt tears slowly fill up my eyes and I tried my best to fight them back. But I lost and the tears fell from my eyes. Sasori pulled me in for a hug but was careful of my injuries and I allowed myself to cling to him and let the tears fall freely. When my tears finally dried, I was exhausted and in pain and Sasori noticed. "Will you let me take care of your injuries? I will need help from Konan and Kakuzu though…" He asked me and I thought long and hard before answering him. "Will they hurt me?" I asked, not realizing just how much my parents had damaged me. His eyes widened and he said. "Of course not, they are my friends Sakura, no one here will hurt you." "Promise?" "I promise." I nodded then and he went to the door and asked for this Konan and Kakuzu. Then he came back to sit next to me on the bed. The first one through the door was Konan, she had pale skin, blue hair, copper eyes and a lip piercing. She gave me a little smile and said. "Don't worry sweetie, were going to take good care of you." Then Kakuzu came through the door and I eyed him suspiciously. He was really tall, taller than Sasori, and he was tanned. He had a mask that covered the lower half of his face and his eyes were a startling red and green. He didn´t say anything to me but his eyes told me that he wasn´t going to hurt me. Sasori turned to me and said. "Now you need to tell us about your injuries." I nodded but lowered my head before I told them. "I´m bruised all over, I may have a concussion, I believe my left ribs are broken, there are half healed cuts on my legs and abdomen, my hands are badly burned and I have several open wounds on my back." I didn´t tell them that the wounds on my back came from being whipped, they were going to find that out soon enough anyway. "There might be more but I´m not sure…" I added when nobody said anything. I didn´t realize that they were shocked to hear about my injuries so when Konan swiped away a tear I didn´t understand why. "Why are you crying?" I asked her. "I cry because nobody should have to go through what you have been through, and because you're so brave." I didn´t understand this, I wasn´t brave at all and Sasori had been through the same hell as I. I told her this but this time it was Sasori that answered me. "I didn´t go through the same thing, sure they beat me but nothing else, Konan is right Sakura you really are brave." How could they say that I was brave? I was scared of meeting new people because I thought they were going to hurt me. I was scared of sleeping because I wasn´t sure that I'd wake up. "How am I brave? I don't understand…" "You are brave because you continue to live and because you fight for your right to be alive." The answer didn´t come from Sasori or Konan as I would have thought, it came from Kakuzu. I met his gaze and suddenly I got the feeling that he knew what I'd been through, he must´ve experienced something similar to be able to give me that answer. I didn´t say anything but I saw in his eyes that he knew what went through my mind just a moment ago. I saw his lips turn up just a little bit under the mask and I gave him a small, shy smile back. But soon they all got to work on my injuries starting with my aching hands. As soon as Konan took off the bandages I´d put on, she and Sasori winced and Kakuzu gave me a worried frown. "My god, how did this happen?" Konan asked me, concern clearly visible in her eyes. "Hot coffee twice in two weeks." I answered her and bit back a whimper as she put on some cold cream. Next they asked to take a look at my ribs and I hesitated before I pulled of my shirt using only my right hand, after all I wore a bra underneath. I gave my bloody, dirty shirt to Sasori but kept my eyes trained on the floor. I was embarrassed and self-conscious about my mistreated body and to realize almost my entire left side was just as one single bruise didn´t make me feel better. After much painful prodding and poking from both Konan and Kakuzu they told me that I had four broken ribs and that it needed to be bandaged as well. I knew they were going to ask to see my back next so I turned around and let them see it. Silence filled the room but I could feel the gazes from all three of them on my back. "I don´t know how to treat this, should we leave it as it is or should we bandage her whole back?" Konan asked. "I think it will hurt less if we bandage it, besides we have to bandage her ribs anyway." Kakuzu answered. When they started bandaging me it hurt like hell so to keep myself from letting them know I bit my lip until I tasted blood. When they finally finished I couldn´t keep the blackness away any longer and let myself once again fall into unconsciousness.
I woke to the feeling of somebody next to me in bed and felt the panic rise before I realized that it was only Sasori. "Sasori?" I whispered. "I´m here, how are you feeling?" "I´m better but I still feel like shit." I answered truthfully. "I imagine you do." Was his only reply and felt something similar to worry take a grip on my stomach. "What´s going to happen with me now?" I asked him. "You stay here with us of course, I´m not letting you go back to that hell." I wasn´t worried about our parents, they would most likely move again and then probably kill each other. No I was worried of two completely different people… Orochimaru and Sasuke. The former wanted to recruit me to his gang and the latter wanted to use me as his slave. But Sasori didn´t know anything of this yet. "I´m not worried about our parents, I´m worried about Orochimaru and Sasuke…" I admitted while hiding my face against his chest. "Why are you worried about them?" Asked he with muscles tensing up at hearing their names. "Orochimaru signed a contract with our parents saying that I´m to be his gang's property more or less…" I didn´t like to have to tell him this but he needed to know it, I was really terrified of Orochimaru. "As for Sasuke, he wants me as his personal slave, I believe that's the reason for Orochimaru signing the contract with our parents." I explained, still hiding from view against his chest. "That sonovabitch! I´m going to kill him!" Sasoris sudden outburst scared me and I quickly pulled away from him. Sasori quickly realized his mistake and lowered his voice. "I´m sorry Sakura, please don't be afraid of me." My heart almost broke at hearing him beg me and I slowly made my way back, placing my head on top of his chest once again. "I didn´t mean to scare you, but I know of their gang and I´m not letting you near them." I felt reassured by his words and decided that I would try to forget about those two creeps, at least for now. Instead I asked him what he had done since he left so many years ago. "Well as you remember I was only sixteen so at first I just drifted around, then when I was old enough I joined the navy where I met most of the gang." He explained to me. "When I got out of the navy I started searching for you but I couldn't find you, you had moved away." At least I was right about him not coming for me because he couldn´t find me, I thought to myself as he continued his story. "I kept in contact with my team from the navy and soon we became the gang Akatsuki." "You're with the Akatsuki?" I asked him with a shocked expression on my face. "Yeah, why are you so shocked?" He gave me a look and I quickly answered him. "Why would they want anything to do with me? The Akatsuki are powerful and skilled, I´d just be a bother to them…" Sasori gave me a long, hard look before he said. "You are not a bother. Don´t forget that I´m too are a part of Akatsuki, besides when the other guys get to know you, I just know that their going to love you just as I do." I gave him a small smile and asked him. "Maybe you´re right… But I don't know them, it´s embarrassing but I´m actually scared of them…" I admitted with lowered eyes. At first I thought he wasn´t going to say anything but then he did. "I didn´t know they damaged you so badly… You are afraid that the others will hurt you are you not?" I nodded and he continued. "I can tell you that they won´t hurt you but I know that only time can make you believe me, but I want you to remember that I wouldn´t let you meet these people if they were a threat to you." "I know, if you didn´t care about me you wouldn´t have come back for me, but I don't know how I will be able to meet these people, they are so many…" He seemed to think about the problem before he asked me. "Are you still afraid of Konan and Kakuzu?" I thought about it and discovered much to my surprise that I wasn´t afraid of them, perhaps it was the medic in them that calmed me? "No I´m not afraid of them…" "Well then you only have seven left to meet." He told me happily. "Only seven?" "Yeah, Pein the leader, Itachi, Kisame, Hidan, Deidara, Tobi and Zetzu." "Konan is the only woman?" "Yes." "Poor her… Well at least she and I can gang up on you guys." I added with a smile. He returned my smile and looked as if he was going to say something more but he got interrupted by a growling from my stomach. "You hungry?" He asked me with a smile and I nodded. "Yeah, it has been a couple of days since I ate something…" Sasori paled at this and started walking towards the door, but then he stopped and turned towards me. "You know you have to talk about what our parents did to you, if not with me then with someone else." I nodded. "I know, but I can´t do that yet..." He nodded, gave me a smile and disappeared out through the door. I took a good look at the room, it was quite beautiful. It had a light brown wooden floor with a big fluffy blue-green rug on. The walls were the same calming blue-green as the rug and a door to my left indicated that there was a private bathroom. There were two big windows with white curtains and beautiful flowers on the windowsills. The bed was a queen size and had light pink sheets and a white comforter. There was also a desk with a laptop on, a dresser and a wardrobe, both of them filled with some basic clothes, not much but it would be enough for a couple of days. There was also a bookshelf, half-filled with various books. A big mirror hung over the dresser where I also found a hairbrush and some scented candles. I took a peek in the bathroom and found out that there was a door opposite of mine, which meant I was sharing with someone. The bathroom had black marble floor and white tiles on the walls. There was a big shower and an even bigger bathtub. One wall was shelves filled with fluffy black towels in different sizes and over the double sink was a huge mirror. Just as I closed the door and made my way back to the bed there was a knock on the other door and Sasori came back with a big platter of food. But he didn´t come alone, he was in company of Konan and an orange-haired guy with a lot of facial piercings and purple-grey eyes.
I felt myself go stiff and didn´t dare take my eyes off this new person. I saw that he noticed my reaction and he stopped a few feet away from me while Sasori put down the platter of food. "Sakura this is Pein, the leader of Akatsuki." I took a deep breath and then hesitated before I met his gaze. "Hi." He gave me a small smile and by the chocked reaction from Konan and Sasori this was not something that happened very often. His strange eyes didn´t leave my face for a second and just as I started to feel nervous about it, he said. "It will be alright." I felt a wave of relief surge through me and despite the weird looks from Konan and Sasori I gave Pein a small, hesitant hug before replying. "Thank you." Then I turned my focus on the food that was waiting for me and as I ate, the other three discussed different plans to move forward from this situation. After my meal Konan turned to me and said. "I need to take another look at your back." I sighed but turned once again around on the bed and pulled of my shirt. I heard Pein gasp as he got a good look at my destroyed back, I knew it would scar and silently wondered just how bad it would look. Just as Konan finished her examination and was about to start rewrapping my back, there was a quick knock on the door before it opened to let whoever was behind get a clear look of my bared back. I tensed up and almost panicky shot a look over my shoulder at the person in the doorway. The first though that hit me was that this guy is HOT! He was pretty tall and thanks to him not wearing a shirt I got a good look at his rippling muscles. He had silvery, slicked back hair that reached the nape of his neck and beautiful looking violet eyes. He had some scars as far as I could tell but none as severe as mine, he also wore a silver pendant around his neck. He was panting and it was first now that I saw the almost panicked look on his face. "Deidara came back, he´s hurt." He told them, his voice dark and a little raspy. Both Pein and Sasori were on their feet and out of the room before I could blink. Konan quickly turned to me and said. "I need to help them, will you let Hidan rewrap your back?" I nodded to her and said. "I´ll be fine." She gave me a quick smile and rushed out of the room, only stopping to give this Hidan guy instructions. As soon as she was out of the door Hidan gave me a curious look and said. "You´re Sasoris baby sister Sakura, right?" I nodded and lowered my gaze as a blush made its way up on my cheeks. It felt as if his eyes could see right through me to my soul. He noticed this and sat beside me on the bed before asking. "Are you afraid of me?" I thought for a while before answering him. "No, I don´t think so… At least I´m trying not to be." He stared at me for a moment before giving me a small smile, he knew I put trust in him, and started to rewrap my back. "How did you get these?" He asked, his fingers lightly touching one of the still open wounds. "My father whipped me with his belt." I told him with an emotionless voice, I was not prepared for his reaction. "What!? Fucking shithead! I´m going to fucking kill him!" I was startled by the string of cuss words that came from his mouth and by the dark, threatening aura that suddenly surrounded him. I panicked and franticly tried to get out of his reach. I hardly noticed when I reached the end of the bed and fell on the floor. I didn't stop until I was pressed tightly against the wall, gasping as I tried to draw a breath into my lungs. Hidan quickly kneeled beside me but as I only panicked more he gave up on that plan and instead rushed toward the door. "Kakuzu!" he yelled and in only seconds the tall tanned man showed up. He took one look at me and then showed Hidan out the door, telling him something I couldn´t hear. He then quickly kneeled in front of me saying. "Sakura, can you tell me what is wrong?" I tried to slow my breathing, only to find out that I couldn´t. "I don't… know,… I can´t… breath." He seemed to know what was wrong, even if I didn´t, and without hesitation he moved me so that he sat on the floor behind me and pulled me tightly against his chest, my back against his front. "Try to take deep and slow breaths." He instructed me and then carefully placed his hand over my eyes, the other hand holding a lose grip around my waist. The warm darkness provided by his hand soon made my breathing slow down and I was able to think again. I leaned back into Kakuzu and sighed, what had I done to poor Hidan? "What are you so worried about?" asked Kakuzu. "How do you know I'm worried?" I replied. "Your muscles are so tense it must hurt, is it about Hidan?" I slowly nodded, shame heating up my face as I said. "He must think he did something wrong…" "He did." Was Kakuzus emotionless answer. "But he couldn´t know he was going to scare me… I don't want to be scared of him or of anyone of you guys for that matter…" I whispered, a tear rolling down my cheek. "I know you don´t…" He answered, wiping off the tear with his thumb. "How about I go talk to him and tell him what to do if it happens again, he is after all quite short-tempered." "I´d like that, thank you Kakuzu, but please don't scare my brother with this? He has enough problems with me as it is…" I stood up and then reached out a hand to Kakuzu who took it with a slight thoughtful expression before he said. "He doesn´t think of you as a problem you know, but I promise not to scare him even if I have to tell him." "Fine." I pouted but Kakuzu just chuckled and told me. "Go take a shower Sakura, I´ll tell Hidan to come back here soon to help you rewrap your injuries." I nodded, I suspected he was afraid that I'd get scared of Hidan if he didn´t come back soon enough and I also suspected he might be right. I took a quick shower then dressed in some comfortable underwear and a pair of grey sweatpants that I´d found in the dresser. I didn´t bother with a shirt as I still needed the wounds to be rewrapped. When I exited the bathroom I found Hidan back in my room, he was standing by the door looking like he´d rather be somewhere else. But I didn´t know if it was because I made him uncomfortable or if it was because something else. But judging by his reaction earlier and Kakuzus words he was not normally the gentle and caring man he appeared to be in front of me. I knew that right know I could only handle gentle but at the same time I was curious of him, I wanted to know how he really was. As I was lost in thoughts he slowly got closer to me until he stood only a few feet away, watching me carefully. He gave me a look as if he intended to say something but then changed his mind. "I´m sorry for what happened before." I blurted out before I got the time to rethink it. He just looked at me with his mouth slightly ajar before collecting himself and answering me. "There´s no need for you to be sorry, you can´t help it if you´re having an anxiety-attack." He took a quick look at my eyes before continuing. "If anything I´m the one that should be sorry, Sasori told all of us that we had to be careful around you because of the trauma. If only he would tell us what the trauma was…" The last part he muttered under his breath as if I wasn´t meant to hear it. But I did and I replied without thinking. "He didn´t tell you guys that our parents abused first him, and then after he moved they continued their torture on me?"