Title: A Demon's Tale
Author: swiftstar85
Genre: Drama/Friendship/Romance
Rating: T for some strong language, violence, suggestive material, and crude humor.
~Chapter Eleven~
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, though I wouldn't mind if I did.
During the hour of resting, Gaara had been pacing back and forth, waiting for everyone to rest. He felt as if he couldn't concentrate very well after what happened earlier that day and what was happening with Quoi. He was having such a hard time trying to meditate because the images of Quoi ending up dead because he hadn't been careful. He didn't know what he would do if something really bad happened to Quoi. He would never forgive himself if the boy ended up dead. And he wasn't sure if Temari would either. He knew very well if Quoi ended up dead, Temari would break just as well as he would. She had grown to really care about him. She even called him little brother a few times. Quoi had practically become a part of their family.
"What's......" He heard Sakura speak up, making him turn and looked at her. "This book.....?"
Gaara frowned before looking at the book she was holding and found that it was Sai's brother's book. She was looking through it but something seemed to have caught her attention about it. She was staring at with vague surprise, at some picture that he could barely see. Frowning even more, he moved closer to see it better. His eyes lit up to see what it was. He was surprised by what he and Sakura were looking.
"Hey!" Sakura called over towards Yamato and Naruto now, who had been looking at map and trying to come up with a plan of attack on Orochimaru. But immediately their attention was on them. "You two, check this out! Hurry!" Sakura called again.
Naruto and Yamato both stood up and hurried over to Gaara and Sakura who were still staring at the book with confusion. They bent down next to them and looked at the book with the two. And like them, they frowned with confusion. Naruto tilted his head to the side as he stared at the picture on the pages. "Just what is this picture......" He murmured very confused. "This is so very strange."
It was a picture of a boy who looked so much like Sai standing on the page, looking up at them. But there was such a blank look on the boy's face, which was exactly what Sai looked like. It was the same picture on the front cover though.
"So....Sai drew this." Yamato said tilting his head to the side.
Sakura shook her head as she began turning the pages, showing them more pictures that Sai had drawn. "But look. This book.....the two pages in the center are very different from the rest. Here." She showed them another picture of Sai at the very center of the book. Gaara even frowned like the rest. The thing was about this picture, it was of Sai, yet there was no face. There were no eyes or nose or even a mouth. It was just blank. But the thing was about this Sai was he was holding out his hand to the center as if he was reaching for something. "These pictures on all of the rest of the pages are finished, it's just this one page that isn't."
"What about those other pages? If we can understand the content then we might be able to figure out something about Sai." Yamato said with a frown.
Sakura shook her head as she began turning the pages to the front and then began flipping through them slowly to get back to the center. "Well, it looks almost like it's the stories of two boys. The one on the front cover and the one on the back." She told them. "In other words, it works out so that the story of each of these boys starts with their respective cover and works its way towards the center. But the characters are silent and not a single word is written." She explained.
"But what's the story like then?" Naruto asked frowning.
Sakura shook her head as she glanced up at the blonde above her but flipped the pages up to the very first page. "Yeah....I don't really understand it that well....if you start with the black haired boy for instance then....." She paused to show them the first pages of the book and it revealed a drawing of the black haired boy facing off with some kind of monster with a skull like face. They were obviously fighting each other. But while the boy held no weapon, the enemy did. Then Sakura turned the page to the next. It was another picture of the dark haired boy facing a new monster. But there was something different about the boy. He now held a weapon. "The same boy is always on the right page, with the left side being a different person every page." She told them turning the page again. Gaara merely frowned as he narrowed his eyes at the boy on the page.
"Hey! Wait a second! Go back one page!" Naruto said loudly, sounding as if he had realized something. Sakura, Gaara and Yamato frowned at him but the pink haired girl did what Naruto told her to. She went back to the last page where Naruto leaned closer frowning as he studied the characters. But then his eyes brightened as he pointed. "I thought so....see the boy on this page....on the next page his outfit is a little bit different. Not just that but look." He pointed again as he turned the next page. "He's carrying the same weapon as the guy that was drawn on the last page."
And when Gaara, Sakura and Yamato looked they were surprised to see that he had a point. The boy was wearing the same outfit and carried the same weapon as his enemy as he faced a new opponent.
"I guess it's a story about a boy vanquishing his enemies one after the other then......" Yamato murmured.
Sakura turned the next page and it was another. This picture was the same as the ones before only with a new enemy and the boy was carrying the same weapon as the enemy before. Gaara could only frown as he narrowed his eyes at the book. He didn't understand exactly. He knew that the boy must have been Sai. It looked like him. But why was he fighting all of these enemies and then donning their weapons. "And yeah. The next one also....and the next."
"So two stories about boys growing up as they fight their enemies....then..." Yamato paused again.
Sakura flipped the book to the other side of a pale haired young man. This one was very different from the black haired boy and seemed to be just a little older too. "While it starts at the other end, the white haired boy has the same kind of story." She told them as she flipped through the pages and revealed the story was exactly like the others.
"Hey....don't you think that black haired kid looks like Sai?" Naruto said frowning.
Gaara merely glanced at his best friend, somewhat dryly. He couldn't believe that Naruto just barely noticed that. But still he frowned as he looked down at the picture of the white haired boy, wondering who that was. And even Sakura asked the question very quietly. But then he saw Sakura's eyes light up. "It might be.....Sai's brother." She stated, making the three guys look at her in surprise. "And that would mean the boys on the covers are......Sai and his brother."
All four of them just frowned as they looked at the book rather thoughtfully. They wondered exactly why Sai had made this book and what its purpose was. It was enough to distract Gaara from his thoughts about Quoi, even though he was still a little worried about him. But then Yamato's head jerked up as if he had just received a message and he stood up straight. "Let's get going now. Looks like my Clone has been able to locate their base." he said, making all of them look at him with surprise but determination.
"And my apprentice? Have you managed to locate him yet?" Gaara asked very serious again, his mind returning to the thought about Quoi.
Yamato turned his head away from them as he tried to concentrate but then his face darkened as if he had gotten the answer. He lowered his head a little but then turned his creepy eyes onto Gaara, giving his head a light nod. "It appears.....my Clone found a dead body." He held up a hand when Gaara's face went completely white and his eyes grew wide, as did Naruto's and Sakura's. The pink haired girl had actually gasped as she slapped her hand over her mouth as she looked up at Gaara with growing tears in her eyes. "No, no! It wasn't Quoi. It was a corpse meant to look like Sai, probably to distract my Clone. It worked for a brief moment but there's no sign of your apprentice. But there was a note left behind, attached to a tree not too far." The ANBU quickly explained. "As far as my Clone can tell, it's a note left by Orochimaru." His face grew grim. "He has Quoi and he says that if you want to see him again alive, you have to stop chasing him, Gaara."
Gaara's face only darkened before he balled up a fist so tight that his knuckles went snow white, all the while his teeth clenched tight.
Quoi's head hurt really bad as he found himself coming to finally. He could feel himself bobbing up and down a little, due to the fact that he was being carried by someone. It took him a very long minute to register what had happened to him. He almost didn't remember. But the images of a dead body that looked like Sai and then finding out that Sai was a traitor and then being captured by two obviously very psychotic Ninja came right at him from the back of his memory.
He remembered that he was now the prisoner of Sai's new friends, Orochimaru and Kabuto, whom he remembered being the enemy.
For a moment, Quoi didn't do anything but look around from his upside down point of view. He became aware of how dark it was now. They were inside some kind of building with cold stone walls all around them. There were no windows at all so he figured that they must have been underground somewhere. It sure smelled rather earthy, yet moist as well. There were sounds of dripping water too.
And then he heard a very cold voice, which almost made him jump but Quoi fought himself to not to. He just laid across the gray haired, Four-eyed freak's back and listened while trying not to breath too hard from panic.
"You're late." Came a very cold voice from somewhere behind him and in front of the three jerks who had taken him prisoner. "Orochimaru....did you forget about how you said you were going to teach me a new Jutsu this afternoon?"
Kabuto just made an annoyed huff as he shifted the boy laid over his shoulder, not registering that he just grunted from getting a little air knocked out from his lungs. "You fail to mind your mouth, as always." He said rather annoyed. And he felt a dark look get shot in his direction by a dark shadow within the shadows.
Orochimaru, however, chuckled as he shifted his weight and shook his head. "Oh, do calm down please." He said sounding very amused before motioning to Sai right next to him. "Instead of training, I happen to have come by a little present for you. He's a Shinobi from Konoha, just like you. I figured you could bathe yourself in nostalgia, talking about your old village...." He said with dark amusement.
And because Kabuto shifted his weight and turned slightly, Quoi was allowed to see who they were talking to.
Quoi's eyes had taken a minute to try and register where they were at, seeing only from the lights of candles lit on the walls. And when the Four-Eyes turned, he looked across the chamber like room to see a dark figure sitting against a large stone made snake head. The dark figure's eyes had been closed for a minute but when he, obviously a guy, opened his eyes, Quoi's very body froze when he saw a pair of blood red eyes gazing towards him and his three cruel captors. Those red eyes met his, and the head tilted a little to get a better look at him.
"Greetings. My name is Sai." Sai said, putting on his blank smile. "You must be Sasuke Uchiha....."
The dark figure turned his eyes away from the boy on Kabuto's shoulder and looked at Sai with such an icy look. "Get lost." He said very coldly.
The very voice made Quoi shudder, which surprisingly still didn't alert Kabuto that he was awake. Sai, however, let out a low sigh, his head dipping low. "Even when I force myself to smile, it seems I'm the type of person who ends up being hated." He lift his head up again and looked right at the dark figure called Sasuke Uchiha. "And Naruto-kun didn't seem to care much for me the whole time too." There was a pause before Sai tried to sound cheerful again. "But you know....in comparison to Naruto.....I think I'm going to be able to get along better with you." He finished.
There was another pause before there came a low rumble within the room. Quoi wasn't exactly too sure what happened that very next minute because Kabuto had turned again. But he saw Sai flinch before he fell backwards and landed hard onto his rear end. Quoi would have laughed if he wasn't so scared though.
"Sasuke!" Kabuto yelled at him, his grip loosening a little on Quoi, but he was ignored.
Orochimaru was smirking though as he looked down at Sai who wiped his forehead, removing sweat from his brow, who seemed kind of surprised to see that he was sweating. "It'd be a good idea not to tease Sasuke too much. You see, he's even harder to deal with than I am." He warned the young ninja in black.
There was a sound of shuffling and Quoi was allowed to see the dark figure again, seeing that he was pushing himself to his feet, not really paying too much attention to them anymore. "And I don't care to deal with trash like him. Orochimaru, it's time for training now." Sasuke Uchiha said darkly though he turned his strange red eyes back onto Quoi on Kabuto's back, who was looking fearfully at him.
"Naruto told me quite a bit about you." Sai said, getting Sasuke's attention once again as he stood up. "It seems he's been looking for you all this time. For the last three years."
There was a snort from the dark before the dark figure called Sasuke shook his head, seeming to be very un-amused. "Oh yeah. I guess I do remember someone like that." He then turned his blood red eyes back onto Quoi, who was stalk still and looking at him with fear. Those red eyes narrowed before they flickered back over to Sai when he took a step forward again.
"Naruto considers....." Sai began quietly. "He considers you to be almost his own true brother. That's what I heard from Sakura."
The dark figure was quiet for a very long time before he turned his head slightly towards Sai, the light catching his face a little. "My brother.....I only have one....a certain guy I want to kill." He said very coldly. And it was cold enough to make even Quoi shudder. He didn't understand how this guy could want to kill his own brother. His shudder seemed to attract the dark figure's attention again and he lift his head before letting those red eyes flicker over to Orochimaru. "Orochimaru....what's with the kid?" He asked coldly.
Quoi quickly shut his eyes when he saw the tall thin man turn in his direction. He didn't want that man to realize that he was awake, fearing that he might do something to him if he found out. He knew that the Sasuke guy was aware he was awake but he hadn't blown his cover just yet. And he was pretty sure that he wasn't going to. Sasuke Uchiha didn't seem to have any respect for the tall thin man at all. "Oh, this?" The serpentine ninja chuckled before he moved closer and grabbed Quoi's chin and lifting his head. It took a lot of will power not to flinch. And while at it, the serpentine ninja pulled off the cloth around his mouth. "This charming little mouse is going to participate in one of my experiments. We found him following us. It appears that he's your old team mate's student." He said chuckling with a hiss. "Though, now and then you can use him as a target for some of your Jutsu. We can always have our dear medic here heal him." He said as he dropped Quoi's head back against Kabuto's back.
"Heh, I'd rather just make him into one of my corpses. He's probably not even worth the effort, Orochimaru-sama." Kabuto said jabbing Quoi hard in the leg.
And Quoi didn't like that, nor did he like the insult. He had spent most of his life getting called worthless by the Sand Ninja of Sunagakure and he wasn't about to let this Four-Eyed freak do it either. So with a great amount of anger swelling within his chest, he let his eyes snap open before he lashed out and grabbed Kabuto's long pony tail, yanking it hard. He got the desired effect he had hoped for. The gray haired ninja let out a yell of pain before he practically dropped the boy onto the ground. Quoi wasn't exactly finished yet with punishing this freak. He kicked out very hard with his heel and slammed his foot right into the Four-Eyes' knee cap, which gave him a satisfying snap. Obviously, Quoi had just broken the gray haired freak's knee.
Of course, Kabuto let out a yell of pain as he staggered back and covered his knee with his teeth gritted with pain. He couldn't even stop another yell of pain while everyone else was watching the whole fray. Orochimaru was actually finding it very amusing and he hid his grin behind his thin hand while Sai watched blankly.
Even in the dark, Sasuke smirked as he watched the pain this little boy just put the big bad medical genius in. He had to admit it, but he was now amused with the boy.
"Why you little......!!!" Kabuto yelled in rage at Quoi who was trying to get to his feet. He limped forward quickly before swinging a hand and backhanding the boy hard across the face. The very impact sent Quoi flying several feet away from him and the gray haired Ninja followed after raising a hand, which now was glowing a fiery blue.
Quoi, of course, couldn't help but stumble back away from him, ignoring the pain in his cheek as he rose an arm to shield himself. He had to admit it but that gray haired guy was now pretty scary because he was so angry. So he just let out a yell of fear. "No! Don't hurt me, please!" He begged as he scooted back further away from Kabuto.
His pleas seemed to effect Sasuke though. His smirk was gone and his head came up a little as he stared down at the boy's terrified face. That was a face he seemed to recognize, or at least the expression at least. For a brief second, he saw his child self in this boy's place, cowering under his older brother, Itachi, who had been covered in blood after murdering their parents. Frowning, he lift his head higher and took a step forward and right over the boy to stand in between Kabuto and him. His action made Kabuto's hand stop short before he could slice it right into the cold tempered young man in front of him. "I think that will be enough, Kabuto." Sasuke said coldly.
Kabuto somewhat glared at him for interfering though before he dropped his eyes onto the cowering boy behind the dark figure in between them. "Sasuke, that little brat just broke my knee cap! Move!" He demanded.
And for that demand, the red eyes flashed dangerously at the gray haired ninja, who drew back immediately, knowing he had done wrong by demanding Sasuke Uchiha of anything. Almost for the briefest moment the air felt so cold, ice cold to every one of the occupants' skin. Even Quoi was shuddering in fear.
"That will be enough now." Orochimaru said seeming to find a lot of amusement about the entire situation. He just met eyes with Kabuto who jerked around to look into his eyes. But he just shook his head as he waved a hand. "Kabuto-kun, why don't you just to your lab and take care of that knee, of course, after you show our new friend here," He motioned to Sai, who had been watching Quoi with a frown. "To his new room." He then pulled out a large envelope and held it out to Kabuto. "Also, use these to compile a Bingo book. As for our new little toy," He let his yellow eyes flicker over to Quoi who flinched under his gaze. "Sasuke, you wanted to train. And our new toy needs a punishment for being so naughty to our Kabuto-kun." he grinned almost evilly. "Why don't you just play with this little mouse for a while and teach him a lesson about manners? Try out some of those new Jutsu you learned. It'll give you something to do for now. I, on the other hand, have some other manners to attend to." He then turned and walked away.
Sasuke made a growl in the dark as he glared at Orochimaru's back through the dark but then he jerked around and looked coldly down at Quoi, who cringed under his fiery red gaze. "This is such a waste of my time." He growled but bent down and wrapped an ice cold grip around Quoi's arm, yanking him to his feet. It was hard enough to make him yelp in pain but had no choice but to follow after the obviously not so nice ninja. He had to pause to turn sharply around and yank out a Katana he had strap to his back. That really made Quoi freeze up with fear. But instead of striking him, Sasuke turned him sharply and cut the bonds around his wrists without even cutting him. Then he wrapped his cold hand around his wrist, almost too tightly and yanked him after him out of the room.
Quoi, however, made a quick glance over his shoulder over at Sai, who was watching and he was surprised to see for only the briefest second, there was pity in the usually emotionless ninja's dark eyes as he watched him get yanked out of the room.
Not too long of being yanked and pulled down a long corridor, and Quoi ended having to nearly run to keep up with the cold ninja holding onto him, he was surprised to see what Sasuke looked like when light finally shone on his face. He wasn't even much older than his Master Gaara. He was actually the same age, with raven black hair with a tint of blue within the strains. His eyes were very dark now, with no hint of red as there had been not too long ago. He was wearing a pale gray-white shirt that was opened at the front and revealing his four pack stomach and he was wearing black pants under a violet scarf, with a purple rope tied around his waist.
It was then that Quoi realized who this was. He remembered the name that Gaara had mentioned once and even realized that this was who His Master and Naruto and Sakura was even looking for. Quoi felt his breath catch within his chest, and almost stumbled when he had hesitated. He flinched when Sasuke shot him a very cold look from over his shoulder. Cringing, the boy tried his best to keep up with him as they went down through the stone corridors. "You.....you're.....Sasuke Uchiha?"
The cold young man shot him another look from over his shoulder before he came to a sudden halt in front of some doors, which almost made the boy crash into him. But he roughly shoved him right off of him before he threw the door open and practically threw Quoi into the well lit room. The boy stumbled as he went flying into the room before tripping over his feet and crashed to the ground. The kid only yelped in pain before he was quickly sitting up and looking up at the dark haired ninja with fear. Sasuke didn't look at him as he stepped into the room and then slammed the door shut before removing his Katana, dropping it right by the door. It took Quoi a second to glance around, only to realize exactly where he was. It was a Dojo. And judging by some of the burn marks and blood stains all over the walls and floor, it didn't take long to realize what this ninja had planned for him.
"N-no......" Quoi whimpered before trying to push himself to his feet, yet shakily before cringing when the very cold looking Sasuke Uchiha turned towards him and even took a few threatening steps towards him. The boy then threw his arms above his head. "Master Gaara....." He whimpered terrified and waited for the beating of his lifetime.
However, Sasuke stopped in his steps and stared at the boy. After hearing those words come right out this kid's lips, he really couldn't help but stare at him coldly. He watched as the boy continued to bend forward and keep his arms over his head but then he tilted his head. "What did you say?" He said rather coldly.
Slowly, Quoi lowered his arms, yet was shaking violently as he left his trembling head to look up at Sasuke with fear. He was breathing very rapidly as he met the cold gaze but then he shakily straightened. "I.....I....sa-said.....Ma-Master Gaara....." He said his voice breaking as he tried to take a wobbly step back away from Sasuke.
There was a very long silence in the room as Sasuke stared coldly at the boy before him before he turned his eyes away from him to stare at the wall with a frown. So he had heard right. This boy had said Master Gaara. That just made him snort with dry humor before turning his cool gaze back onto the kid before him. He noted how terrified the boy was but after looking him over, observing him, he folded his arms and shifted his weight. "You're from the desert aren't you?" He said still very coldly.
Shakily, Quoi nodded. "Su-Suna Village......sir." He added that last word, hoping that it would prolong his beating.
Sasuke once again gave a sharp "Un" before he looked the boy over again, noting how ragged he surely looked. He also saw the pretty nasty cut on his arm, which had dried blood caking around the skin and somewhat running dry down his arm. The boy was pretty dirt after being roughly handled by Kabuto, which was no surprise. Kabuto might have been a medic but when it came to enemy patients, he wasn't gentle. "So.....Gaara of the Sand is your master." He stated though it had a hint of a question with it too.
Again Quoi nodded shakily. "Y-yes....sir....." He answered still terrified.
"Stop calling me sir." Sasuke said very coldly, which only made the boy flinch. He didn't even care that it did. He just narrowed his dark eyes at Quoi before lowering his arms again and taking another step towards him, which again made him flinch. "Are you really his apprentice? Because knowing Gaara, he would never take on a weak and useless student. Unless of course, the rumors are true and he's become weak, himself."
That brought some strength in Quoi's eyes and he shot the Uchiha a dark look. He even gnashed his teeth a little at him. "Master Gaara is not weak! He's strong and powerful and wise!" He practically shouted before he realized that he had just snapped at a very dangerous ninja and he cowered again.
But Sasuke was not offended. In fact, his cold lips curled up into a smirk as he studied the boy before him. He had seen some strength flash in the boy's eyes and realized that there might have been something about him after all. "Hmmm." He then tilted his head to the side as he looked Quoi over again. "What's your name?"
That question took Quoi by surprise and he stared at Sasuke with wide eyes before he slowly straightened, now trying to put on a brave face. "Chiquoi. But everyone calls me Quoi." He answered, as boldly as he could. He knew that he really shouldn't show this guy his fear, no matter how dangerous he was. He knew that Master Gaara would have preferred him to be brave just like he would. So he took a deep breath and lift his head higher. "And you're Master Gaara's old friend, Sasuke Uchiha." he said with determination.
Again Sasuke smirked and he nodded. "That's right. So Gaara has told you about me." He received a meek nod from the boy before he turned away from him, now seeming to be disinterested in him. He merely glanced over his shoulder at the kid before holding up a hand. "Come with me. Just talking to you has made me change my mind about training. You are to tell me how strong Gaara has become." He told him. He saw the kid blink as if surprised by his words but he didn't pay too much attention anymore. He just walked towards the sliding door of the Dojo and stopped in front of the door. "Well? Are you coming or do you really want me to use you as a target for my Jutsu?" He asked coldly.
Jumping a little, Quoi then hurried forward to move beside Sasuke but hesitated as he approached him. He swallowed hard as he stopped right next to him and looked up at the much taller ninja. "Umm....."
"Pick up my katana and hand it to me then open the door." Sasuke ordered. Those orders just made Quoi's face darkened. He didn't like to be bossed around. As if he didn't get enough of that from Kankuro. But the dangerous look that Sasuke gave him made him quickly reconsider and he swooped down and picked up the katana and held it out to the raven haired obviously bully. But then he stepped towards the door and slid it open. He quickly moved out of the way as Sasuke brushed right by him, barking at him to follow. Quoi flinched for a second but then hurried after him. He had to jog to keep up with Sasuke's long strides.
They walked for quite a little while, walking through the cold corridors of the underground base. Quoi couldn't help but glance around as they went, trying very hard to think of way of getting out of there. He knew the exit had to be somewhere. But where? He was pretty sure that Sasuke wouldn't tell him. It was more than likely he was going to make a slave out of him, seeing that he was already ordering him around. He found only a little relief to think he wasn't going to get the life beaten out of him right then. At the moment, he wasn't feeling very well. It was probably the exhaustion he felt.
"Umm....." Quoi would have slapped himself for humming out loud which had made Sasuke shot him a look. He cringed a little but swallowed hard. "That......Or-Orochimaru guy said he was going.....he was going to do experiments on me. Can.....would you tell me what experiments.....he'll probably do to me?" He asked, sounding pretty scared and he really was.
Sasuke stared at him for a few minutes before looking forward again. He didn't answer for a long time but kept on walking through the cool corridors but then he found himself shake his head. "I don't know and I don't care. What Orochimaru does on his own time is his own business. As long as he trains me, that's all I care about." He said coldly but he tilted his head back towards Quoi when he let out a sad sigh and looked at the ground as he tried to keep up. He frowned at him but then looked forward again. "It'll be more than likely he'll do some experiments that deals with enhancing your strength, your senses and maybe even attempt to change your DNA strands to make you do some Jutsu that you, yourself could never learn. It'll be very painful. I always end up staying awake at night because he doesn't keep those stupid test subjects from shutting up as he tortures them." He told Quoi.
Quoi halted in his footsteps with a look of shock on his face and he felt his entire body grow cold. He had not liked the sound of that at all. It scared him to no limit. Tortured? He had never been tortured before other than having the Sand Ninja beat him up constantly. But......what kind of tortures would Orochimaru do to him? He felt his fear rising up again and tears started to swell in his eyes. He became aware that Sasuke had even stopped to turn and look at him rather coldly. But he didn't pay any attention to him. "Tor-tortured? He's going.....he's going to torture me?" He said weakly.
"More than likely kill you. His test subjects don't really last very long." Sasuke said rather dryly.
A choke rose up within Quoi's throat and he felt himself break a little as he felt his tears now spilling over his eyes. He wrapped his arms around his middle and slowly lower himself to a crouch, doubling over as if he was going to be sick. He really did feel like he was going to be. "Ma-Master.......Master Gaara......." He began to cry softly as he buried his face into his knees. "When will I ever be the strong ninja you want me to be? Why do I have to always be weak? How am I suppose to protect you from the Akatsuki if I end up dead as some experiment by this monster?" He cried softly.
Sasuke stared at him for a minute before he turned around and went over to next to the boy, looking down at him through a cold stare. He felt no pity for this little brat. But....in a way, those words he just murmured did remind him of himself when he was a kid. "Crying is for the weak. If you want to be strong, don't cry. And don't cower. Stand up tall and don't show your fear. That only proves you are weak." He said coldly.
Quoi lift his head and he looked right up into Sasuke's dark gaze with a dark gaze of his own. "Master Gaara says it's okay to cry if it calls for it." He said rather dryly.
A cold smirk appeared on Sasuke's lips but he shook his head as he stared the boy right in the eyes. "Does it call for it right now?" He asked almost emotionlessly.
Quoi blinked a few times before he lowered his head to the ground. He was quiet for a very long time before he slowly rose to his full height and he wipe his eyes with his dirty arm, ignoring the fact that it stung from the cut on it. He then lift his head higher and tried to look as brave as he could. "No. It doesn't. If Master Gaara were me and he was a prisoner by that Orochimaru-baka, he would face the threat without any fear. He would fight to live and make sure he returned to Naruto-kun and Sakura-kun. He loves them and he would never die because he has to protect Naruto from those Akatsuki bastards." He said as bravely as he could.
Sasuke's dark eyes changed a little as he watched how brave this boy was trying to be and he even turned slightly away to hide the smirk on his face. 'Well, Gaara. Looks like you've been teaching this kid well.' He thought before he turned fully away and started walking, yet he had slowed down so that Quoi could keep up.
Right outside the underground base, not too far away, Team Seven had finally caught up to Yamato's clone, as well as Kankuro. The Puppet Master had caught up to the Clone not more than an hour before they did and went with him, following a trail to a practically dried up lake. So Kabuto really hadn't lied too much about the base being around a lake. And not too long ago, Team Seven had finally found them. Gaara was staring forward with a very serious look on his face and felt rather anxious about trying to find Quoi. He had been quite disappointed that Kankuro hadn't managed to find his student before Orochimaru did, which had the Puppet Master very upset when he found out what happened to the kid. So all five ninja and Yamato's Clone was looking towards some kind of waste land with very little water for a lake. They were all frowning as they looked around but very anxious.
"Here, huh?" Yamato asked his Clone.
The Wood Clone just bobbed his head a little but kept his eyes directly towards the wastes. "The entrance is right below that rock formation in front of us." He stated, pointing towards some pointed rocks almost twenty feet away from them.
Gaara stared at the rock formation with such a serious gaze, and in a way it looked like he was trying to cause them to explode but they never did. They just sat there, defying him. He tilted his head slightly when Naruto moved a little closer. "Under those rocks.....Sasuke is waiting." He lowered his head a little. "Ok. Let's go." He said now taking a step forward.
But Yamato held out a hand and caught him around the chest, holding him back. "Hold on a second." he told him seriously. And as he spoke, the Clone seemed to dissolve right into his hand becoming a very small pill looking object or some kind of seed. Then he held it out towards Naruto. "You can go after you've swallowed this, Naruto." He then held up his other hand and revealed three more. "And here is one for you, Sakura and Kankuro. As well as you, Gaara." He told them. Frowning, each of them took the strange pills and studied them with a frown. "Even if we end up getting separated, with those inside of you, I'll be able to locate you immediately."
"What is this?" Sakura asked staring at it with confusion.
Yamato just shook his head as he looked at her. "To put things simply, those seeds are tracking devices. They're a tool of mine that responds only to my chakra." His head dipped down a little. "Those are just the same as the ones that I planted in Sai's clothes and food." he told them.
All four of the young ninja looked at him with surprise as they studied the seeds. Sakura's eyes were the brightest out of everyone's though. "I see! So this is how you were able to track him." She said brightly.
Astonished, Naruto looked at the ANBU captain with almost awe but confusion. "When did you manage to....."
Yamato smiled faintly at him but shook his head as he folded his arms across his chest. "Don't you remember? How I went back to the room before the two of you at the Hot Springs? Right after that little incident between you and Sai, and of course....." He cut himself off as he glanced over at Gaara, whose face flushed as he looked away. Even Sakura blushed a little at the memory of Gaara's little outburst at Shukaku. "Now you should understand why I went out of my way, using my own money to treat everyone to such a lavish stay at that Hot Springs resort." He shook his head as he smiled slyly. "Everyone was just like Tsunade-sama said. Taking precautions with Sai sure has paid off in the end. I would have told you too, Gaara-sama, but like I said, I had to take careful precautions." he told them.
Gaara merely nodded as he looked at the ANBU captain with an amused look and even felt quite a bit of respect going out to this man. He had to admit it, but he was very smart and sly. "I'm impressed, Yamato-taichou." he said quietly before frowning seriously as he looked towards the dried waste land. "Did you give Quoi one too? Is that how you knew he had been across the ravine and chasing after Sai?"
"Yes." Yamato admitted. "This morning when I offered him some dango for breakfast. I figured you wanted him to be safe and well looked after so I gave him one so that we would be able to track him as well. I didn't realize that he took off after Kankuro joined us because of the excitement that was going on at the time. Not until I checked for him when it was all over. I'm sorry I didn't warn you before."
The young Kazekage shook his head but looked forward as he popped the seed in his mouth as did Kankuro and Sakura. He swallowed the seed before folding his arms. "As long as we reach Quoi in time and he is safe, I don't care." He told them.
Nodding, Yamato looked towards the rock formation. "All right. Enough talk. Swallow that now, Naruto." He waited till Naruto did before he took a step towards the formations. "Okay then. Everyone, it's time. Let's go retrieve Gaara's student back." He said and everyone nodded with serious looks on their faces before they started walking towards the rock formations. "We'll conduct the infiltration in file. Me first...then Sakura, then Naruto and then Gaara. Kankuro, if you don't mind being in the back."
"I have no problem with it." Kankuro stated as he reached up and hooked his hand under the straps of his back that carried his puppets. "Just as long as we get the kid back, safe and sound, I'll follow your orders."
Yamato nodded but then glanced over at Sakura as she readied herself. "What's our method of infiltration?" She asked getting right down to the point.
"We're taking this by the book. So we'll use a Doton technique, earth style, to approach from within the ground." Yamato explained to them before he took the lead.
Everyone nodded as they got into position and followed after him. Though, the young Kazekage's face grew very serious as he looked at the rock formations. 'Quoi, hold on. I'm coming.' He thought very seriously. He could only hope that they were too late. He wouldn't doubt that if Orochimaru knew that he was here with Team Seven, the snake would probably try and kill Quoi the second he realized they were.