36. A Very Terrible Abduction

I groaned. I was surrounded in darkness. It was like waking, my senses slowly coming alive. The soreness hit first throughout my back and other muscles. I detected I was lying on something hard. A headache was forming in my temples and I felt groggy.

A pair of crimson-shaded eyes infiltrated my vision. My eyes widened but they were all I could see. There were black commas in those eyes instead of pupils, and they were spinning in circles. I couldn't look away, even though my brain screamed at me to look away, run, fight.

But it didn't last long. That voice in my head was fading, replaced by a delicate fog that seemed to settle over my thoughts. I felt my knees buckling and I felt myself sway. And those crimson eyes were the last thing I was before my vision was completely overtaken by darkness.

My eyes twitched beneath their eyelids as my mind struggled to understand the vision in my mind. Was I dreaming?

But my brain slowly started to put forth scenes in my mind; memories, all visualized through a fog. Naruto before me, two years older than I'd last seen him. Kiba standing beside me in front of Tsunade's desk. Marks on the trees. Kiba kissing me.

There was no way my mind would have conjured up that dream. No, these were definitely memories. Something had happened. Slowly, my eyelids peeled open. I blinked away my hazy vision until everything was clear.

I was staring up at…what was a I staring at? Some kind of rocky-looking ceiling. I blinked again, but the strange ceiling remained. I was definitely not in my bedroom. Where was I? Slowly, I turned my head to the left and a rocky-looking wall came into sight. Was I in some kind of…cave?

I rolled my head to the right and another wall came into view, a bit further away. I studied it, looking for clues, shadows, anything, but it was just a wall. Until something slipped into my line of sight. A pair of purple eyes blinked at me.

An involuntary cry was wrenched from my throat and I bolted into a sitting position. The new arrival screamed in response, falling backwards. Heart hammering in my chest, I assessed the situation.

I was, indeed, in a cave. It was empty, save me and the person who had startled me. I settled my eyes on them. He was male, skinny, lanky. His shoulder-length hair was powdery white and his irises were a light shade of purple. His mouth was shaped in a surprised 'o', two, sharp canines poking out beneath his upper lip. He looked as startled as I felt, having fallen backwards on his behind, holding himself up by his arms.

Who was this strange man? He seemed surprised to see me. Had he been brought to this place as well? Or was he surprised I was awake? Because he was the one who brought me here? His comical reaction didn't seem to fit.

Eyes darting about, I focused them on the man and narrowed them. I crossed my arms. "Who are you? Where am I?"

I wondered if he'd even respond to my demanding, annoyed tone. He did respond, however. As he did, my hands ran over my waist and thigh. My weapon pouches and holsters remained where I'd left them. My daggers were still secured at my waist. Whoever had brought me here had no intention of fighting with me, or this was the worst abducting in history.

"I'm Suigetsu," the man answered, finally recovering from his surprise. In its place he wore an expression of mild interest.

"Where am I? Did you bring me here?" I asked, studying him carefully. Light was falling on his face from the mouth of the cave. It was still daylight out.

Suigetsu held his hands up in defense. "Woah, I'm not taking the blame for this. This was all Sasuke's idea."

Lightening might as well have struck me. My spine stiffened. The sound of his name sent jolts rushing through my veins. It paralyzed me, eyes wide, lips falling apart.

I didn't know what to make of this Suigetsu's claim. This was all Sasuke's idea. What was? Taking me…to wherever I was? Why? Could this man just be lying? Possible, but why lie? How did he know Sasuke? How could he know about Sasuke's connection with me?

"Sasuke…?" his name finally fell from my lips in a harsh whisper.

Suigetsu was already eyeing me carefully, clearly trying to read me. "Uh…yeah…"

And just like that, the shock evaporated, replaced with a very different emotion. It heated my blood and set my eyes glaring at nothing in particular. I felt my upper lip twist in a scowl and suddenly I was on my feet. The cave was tall enough that I did not hit my head.

"Woah, woah! Where are you going!?" Suigetsu hopped to his feet.

I paid him little mind as I stalked out of the cave. The sun was beginning its descent and it warmed my skin as I stepped out of the shadow of the cave. I was surrounded by forestry, acres of thick tree branches and brush in every direction.

"Hey! You can't come out here," Suigetsu admonished me, scurrying after me.

I stopped, whirling around to face him. "Yeah? What are you gunna do about it?"

Suigetsu opened his mouth, but quickly snapped it shut. He seemed at a loss, his face clearly betraying discomfort. I only rolled my eyes. If he had wanted any leverage on me, he shouldn't have left me my weapons. Annoyed, I turned back around, only to slam into something solid. I stumbled backwards. I blinked the sun out of my eyes as I peered upwards and my blood chilled in my veins. Uchiha Sasuke stared down at me.

Sasuke looked very much the same as I remembered him, just older. The same raven-colored hair cut in the same style, the same angular lines of his face, the same pale complexion. But there was no headband across his forehead. He wore black pants and a white kimono top that revealed an obscenely unnecessary amount of toned chest. A sword was held against his side by a purple, rope-looking sash tied around his waist.

Every word, insult, shout that I had ever dreamed I'd hurl his way died on my lips. Two years of hypothetical planning gone in an instant. And I stood there like a moron, gaping up at his beautiful face. Some inner dialogue remained, screaming at me to pull myself together, to at least close my stupid open mouth, but I was paralyzed. Sasuke, in contrast, stared down at me with complete indifference. As though I was a mere stranger who had bumped into him.

In stories, this would have been the time where the heroine felt such a rush of emotions that it crippled her. Where she would grapple with anguish and happiness and a whole host of contradicting emotions. Where memories of their previous life together would jump unbidden to her mind. Perhaps they would even bring tears to her eyes.

But I was not a heroine of some epic tale. I was just a broken girl with no family who had fucked up two and a half years ago and had never quite recovered. A dejected being who spent their time gambling or sharing drinks and war stories to elude the empty house that waited her. And I felt nothing. No sadness. No anger. No hate or longing or fear. Just nothing. Numbness.

"Sasuke, what's the hold up?"

Of all the things that could have broken the spell, those five words had taken on the task. Snappy and annoyed, the voice clearly belonged to a female. My eyes finally shifted from Sasuke's face as a figure stepped out from behind Sasuke, standing just to his left. A woman, perhaps slightly older than me, standing at least a head shorter than Sasuke. Her magenta hair curled down past her shoulders on one side, and lay completely flat on the other. Square-rimmed glasses shielded calculating eyes the same magenta shade as her hair. She wore a long-sleeved, purple shirt and very black shorts. Black leggings covered the skin to her knees.

The woman's sharp gaze was quick to hone in on me. I watched as her eyes traveled up and down my form, assessing me. I did not copy her movements. But there was no doubt that we were both bristling.

"Who is she?"

At least the thought never left my lips; I only screamed it internally as my eyes narrowed. This woman, however, had thrown it out with the most accusing tone she could muster. She jutted an index finger at me before glaring up at Sasuke for an answer.

"Oh my…" Suigetsu muttered from behind me. Whether he had guessed my mental agreement, I was unsure, but he looked between me and this woman regardless.

But Sasuke ignored this demanding woman's question and simply spoke aloud in his normal drawl. "Jugo, did anyone follow us?"

From the forestry, a man suddenly materialized at Sasuke's side. He was large in stature, towering over Sasuke. He was twice Sasuke's width, his shoulders so broad I wondered if he could fit through doorways. His hair was a shock of orange and his eyes a glowing amber. He glanced at me. "I don't think so."

I was quick to recognize what this meant and I felt my mouth go dry. I swallowed against my throat but raised my chin, meeting Sasuke's gaze evenly. And I spoke to him for the first time in two and a half years. "What did you do to Kiba?"

"He'll have woken up where you last saw him," Sasuke replied, his tone waving off my question like an annoying fly.

I stared him down, but he failed to notice, or care. The girl beside him, on the other hand, glared at me with a cold fury. I was unsure of what I had done to earn this woman's ire, but she was quickly earning mine.

Sasuke glanced past me to Suigetsu. "Nonetheless, it'd be best to move on."

I felt gazes fall on me, even Sasuke's. I glanced to each of them in turn and realization dawned on me. My eyebrows raised, inviting anyone to contradict me, but no one did. And then I laughed.

"You can't be serious? Are you insane?"

"Do we look insane?" Suigetsu asked Sasuke.

I shook my head, about to ask if they were joking, when I remembered that Sasuke didn't joke. But I was still in a state of shocked amusement at their audacity. "You're really expecting me to follow along? Are you nuts? You guys kidnapped me. What do you even want with me anyway?"

By the time I'd asked my last question, the amusement had faded, replaced by a fierce glare and a tone that suggested a rage that had simmered for some time. I couldn't fathom what Sasuke was playing at, but I had no intention of letting him use me and cast me aside ever again.

"I agree. Why do you want her?" the magenta-haired female sniffed.

I turned a glare and a snarl on her. "You've got a problem with me?"

"Actually-!"

"Karin, quit it!" Suigetsu barked, drawing closer to me as if to ward off the furious female.

I wouldn't have needed protection, however. My patience had run thin and the emotions were coming now. Anger and frustration and resentment began to bubble and grow, like a volcano threatening to burst. And I was furious. How dare he bring me here! And how dare he even think I would follow him blindly when he had abducted me for some unknown reason.

"What is this?" I growled at Sasuke, turning my fierce gaze back on him. "Why have you brought me here? Why the hell did you drag me to the middle of nowhere to deal with you and your cronies, who clearly have no idea what you want either? What do you want? Is Orochimaru behind this?"

Suigetsu shot me a glare at the mention of 'crony'.

"Orochimaru is dead," Sasuke said simply, breaking through my tirade.

This indeed stopped me short. My rage flickered for a moment as surprise took over my thoughts. "Wait…what…?"

"Sasuke killed him," the man name Jugo enlightened me with his flat tone.

My eyes glanced to him as he spoke, but then flickered back to Sasuke. The information sank in and added another layer of confusion to my situation. I now had less possible answers than I'd had a moment ago. When I finally spoke, the fire had been taken from voice, leaving my tone much lower and quieter than it had been previously.

"Then…what do you want with me?"

After all this time, why had Sasuke killed Orochimaru and then sought me out? I was confused and surprised and I felt a bit of fear creep into my heart. Because this couldn't be good. The last time I had been this close to Sasuke, he had destroyed me.

"What do you know about the Akatsuki?" Jugo asked.

My eyes shifted to him again. It would have been a strange question, had I not been aware of Sasuke's lifelong ambition of hunting down his brother-a member of the Akatsuki. "Very little. It's a criminal organization comprised of S-ranked missing ninja. Dangerous and lethal."

My eyes flickered back to Sasuke. But he knew all this. He probably knew far more than most people. Why would he go through this trouble to ask me such a pointless question?

Sasuke leveled his gaze on me but watched me with the same indifference as before. "We have confirmed that the Akatsuki is following you."

That caught me off guard. My eyebrows crinkled in confusion as I slowly looked between Sasuke and Jugo. And then I was shaking my head. "No…no that makes no sense. They're probably after Naruto. He just returned to Konoha and-"

"They're not after Naruto," Sasuke cut me off, his voice indicating disinterest with every word that came out of my mouth.

I felt a spark of irritation rise within me. "Oh yeah? So you know all, do you? Who is it? Itachi and Kisame?"

"Yes."

I rolled my eyes. "See, I told you. They're-"

"And Keitaro."

The words died on my lips.

"…What?"

"Your brother is traveling with Itachi and Kisame. They've been hovering around Konoha. They followed you home from your last mission."

I stared.

"Keitaro is dead," I said quietly but with certainty.

"No," Sasuke continued relentlessly. "You'll recall the remains were too charred to identify. It seems he used the battle as a chance to disappear."

My eyes fell to the ground as Sasuke's words pounded into me. I felt my chest go tight. My brother wouldn't have done that to me. He wouldn't have left me alone or made me bare the grief his death would cause. But the remains were charred, his headband intact. But it was impossible. Perfect, law-abiding Keitaro would never leave Konoha to travel with an S-ranked murderer.

But I was shaking.

I noticed my hands curling into fists. I felt my shoulders locking. This couldn't be true. He must be lying.

But why would he lie?

"Even if I believed you," I said quietly. "What is it you want from me? You want me to tell you why they're following me?"

"No. I want you to lure them to us."

I glanced up in surprise.

"You want me to lure out two dangerous, S-ranked criminals," I said flatly, my expression equally as flat.

"Three," Sasuke corrected.

Day had turned to night and I found myself sitting around a fire with Sasuke and his ragtag bunch. Hebi, they called themselves. We'd taken refuge in the cave I'd awoken in, building the fire at the mouth of the cave.

"Why should I believe you," I shot him a glare.

"You already do," was his reply. "Or you would not be here; not voluntarily."

I scowled at him. "I have no doubt the four of you would have contained me if I tried to leave."

He said nothing. He did that when I was correct. He'd always done that.

Despite my words, however, my mind was racing. What if Sasuke was right? What if my brother was alive? My heart soared at the thought, but my stomach plummeted. He would have given everything to join Itachi. Had he joined the Akatsuki? Was he involved in what Itachi was doing? Could he have been involved in the massacre…?

No. I couldn't think like that. Faked death or not, it was not in my brother to do that. I was certain.

Fairly certain. I couldn't deny that faking his own death made me reevaluate everything I thought I knew about my brother. But I noticed Sasuke's eyes on me.

"You couldn't have just asked me?" I muttered at him sourly. "You had to drag me away…literally."

"I couldn't very well show up at your door, could I?" his voice was calm, without the sarcastic sneer I had grown accustomed to years ago.

I sniffed at him, the light from the fire flickering across my face.

"So you're going to help then?" Suigetsu raised an eyebrow.

I hmphed, setting my eyes back on the fire. "I'm not helping you. I'm finding out the truth about me brother."

Suigetsu shrugged. "Good enough for me."

I rolled my eyes and glared into the fire in lieu of glaring at any of the four around me. I was growing rather irritated that Sasuke had suddenly swooped back into my life to turn it upside down. To make me contemplate everything I ever knew. And I had already been angry at him to begin with. The last time I'd seen him he'd slid a blade into me, and I retained a thin, faint scar on my abdomen to prove it. He'd ruthlessly shattered me in all the ways I hadn't already been shattered. Yet here he was, ordering me around like none of it had ever happened.

Oh yes, Uchiha Sasuke was on my shit list.

Suigetsu, Karin and Jugo were asleep by the time the flames flickered down to embers. We lay around the dying fire, trying to soak in the heat. It was late into the night, but I had not yet fallen asleep. I doubted I could even if I tried. Not when I was surrounded by enemies literally on all sides. And not while my mind buzzed with thoughts like an angry beehive. They pulled me in all directions, never letting me focus on one topic at a time. That was, until I sensed movement around me.

Subtly, I peeked through my eyelashes to find Sasuke on his feet and making his way from the cave we'd sheltered in. I waited for his back to disappear before I sat up. My mind was focused now. I got to my feet and followed.

The air was cooler outside of the cave. Only a sprinkling of stars and the glowing sliver of the moon gave me any light. I rubbed at my upper arms as a chill swept over me and followed that chakra that I knew so well.

As I moved along, my mind tried desperately to process the slew of emotions the prior day had wrought. But I didn't want to think about the pain that seeing Sasuke brought me. That a single glance into his eyes made my chest constrict and a phantom pain erupt in my abdomen. So I pushed it away, back into the chasm I'd created out of necessity that had grown deeper and deeper the past few years. But in place of this pain came anger.

White hot rage flooded through me, rushing through my veins like wildfire. And not just as Sasuke. It was anger at myself too. That I'd allowed him past my defenses, that I'd given him the power to destroy me. And it made me all the more furious at him.

I traveled through a patch of forestry and my eyes landed on Sasuke. He stood atop a grassy hill, overlooking the vast expanse of land below. His back was to me and I did not bother to hide my presence as I climbed the hill. With every step my rage built, pounding in my ears. But when the Uchiha clan symbol became clear on the back of his kimono, I faltered.

So many memories rushed over me. Years spent gazing at that symbol on his back as I followed him around. There was still warmth in these memories that had not been stolen by his betrayal. But I quickly blocked them out. That was before. This Sasuke that stood before me was not the one from my memories and I couldn't form the optimism to think my Sasuke was still in there somewhere. Ah; but he was never mine, was he? And suddenly I was wondering what I was doing here. Why I had followed him. Had I had some kind of plan? To what, reach out to him? To let myself hope my Sasuke was in there? And I was once again reminded that he had never been mine. And while that flicker of pain sliced through me, Sasuke's head moved.

It was a very subtle movement, but I saw him glance over his shoulder. But then he turned forward and a new spark of anger flared to life at the dismissal. I suddenly found myself stomping up the hill, hands clenching into fists at my sides.

I found myself at his side, and he didn't even glance at me. Because why would he? I meant so little to him after all. A mere annoyance if anything. And the anger continued to grow and grow until I could feel my fists start shaking. Every mental note to calm myself was immediately banish, swallowed by the monster roaring for some kind of justice. And then it just popped out of my mouth.

"You're a fucking asshole."

It came out clear and crisp with the definite undertone of leashed fury. I watched Sasuke from the corner of my eye and he made no attempt to look at me. His facial expression did not change and his lips stayed firmly sealed. The silence stretched on so long I began to contemplate whether I might hit him or just stomp away. And then he spoke.

"I take it you have something on your mind."

I wanted to scream. I wanted to launch myself at him, punch every inch of that stupidly handsome face. My blood boiled and lips curled in a ravage sneer.

"Something on my mind?" I hissed, eyes flashing, nails biting into my palms. "Need I refresh your memory? That last time I saw you, you left me to die!"

My voice rose with every word I bit out.

Sasuke did finally glance over to me, his facial expression as dismissive as tone. "I aimed for a non-critical area. You were never in danger."

"Do you hear yourself!?" I was so furious I couldn't bring myself to care that my voice had gone strangled and pitchy. "You. Stabbed. Me!"

"I told you to go home."

I was seeing red, literally. My fury was palpable, creating actual heat that made me light-headed. Rarely had I felt such unadulterated rage. It robbed me of my reason, even my words as I began to stutter. "Y-Y-You-absolute-complete…ass!"

I screamed it at him, but he didn't flinch. No muscle even twitched. Instead, he turned away from me. "You haven't changed."

And then he was walking away from me, back down the hill, presumably back towards the cave. And I was left standing there, staring after him with unabated rage. I tried to glare literal holes into his back, but to no avail. A mad thought consumed me then; that I could take out a weapon and hurl it at him. That I could hurt him the way he hurt me.

But I reigned in the thought, as I tried to reign in my fury. As incensed as I was, I had no doubt that I couldn't actually attack him. Because no matter what he'd done to me, no matter who he was now, there was a little girl in me that would never give him up.

And so I flopped down onto the grass, staring up at the stars. I let the hurt and anger wash through me, so that I'd soon be able to lock them back up. But it wouldn't be soon. And sure enough, the sky was just lightening when I was calm enough to return to the cave.

"How can you be sure Itachi knows I'm with you," I questioned after breakfast, kicking dirt over the remains of the fire.

"I've already explained to you that they've been following you," Sasuke replied, his eyes sweeping around his surroundings like a hawk. Despite his cool demeanor, I could tell he was clearly bothered. "They know exactly where we are right now."

"Then what are they waiting for?" I challenged. While some hopeful part of me was beginning to believe Sasuke out of pure desperation, my mind was still hell-bent on proving to him that my brother was indeed dead. To prove it to myself. To negate any dashed hopes.

"For us to make a move," he said simply.

I rolled my eyes, crossing my arms over my chest. "And what exactly do you expect me to do?"

"Why don't we just tie her to a tree and ambush them?" Karin suggested with a smirk. I shot her a glare.

"They're not brain-dead, Karin," Suigetsu rolled his eyes. "They're gunna know each of our hiding spots."

"We don't even know Itachi and Kisame will be there," Sasuke replied, though his eyes still scanned the area.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Suigetsu frowned at him.

"It's Keitaro that wants Nakao. We'll have to do an exchange: Nakao for information on Itachi."

"How do you know he'll give you the information?" Karin asked skeptically.

"I don't."

"And you're just going to barter me!?" I growled, eyes flashing in anger.

"We won't let him take you," Sasuke said calmly, glancing at me briefly. "He has the information on where Itachi is. He can take us to him."

"And what makes you think Keitaro will agree to that?" I glared, arms still crossed tightly in front of me. My blood pressure was certainly rising that I would be given away like a pig for slaughter. If Keitaro was alive, I had no idea who he was anymore. Because he clearly wasn't the person who I thought had died to protect his village. I had no idea what he might try to do to me; what he wanted.

"Keitaro won't do anything to hurt you. If he thinks you're in danger from us, he'll do what we say."

"Looks like we'll have to rough her up a bit to make it convincing," Karin smirked.

"Touch me and you die," I glared at her.

"That's enough," Sasuke said sharply and Karin scowled. "It's time to go. We need to put ourselves out in the open."

I looked at him wearily. It was against all shinobi trainings to wait out in the open for an enemy. Ah, but it wasn't an enemy was it? It was my brother. Well, presumably. But my stomach was clenching.

Sasuke shot me one glance. "Let's go."

We stood in the center of the clearing, surrounded by trees on all sides. Sasuke stood beside me while the rest of his team hovered behind us. Judging by the location of the sun, it was around noon. We'd been standing here for well over an hour. Why? If they were following us as Sasuke had insisted, they had to know we were here. What were they waiting for?

Perhaps I had been right the entire time. Keitaro was dead and Sasuke had either been mistaken or lying. And I felt my heart clench at the thought. Apparently, some part of me had latched onto the idea that Keitaro was alive, despite its possible implications. After all, it was something I'd wished for these past few years.

It was a bright, sunny day. Fluffy clouds sailed gently across the clear, blue sky. But it was in contrast to my mood and part of me wished it would rain, if only to wallow in self pity some more.

I sat on the grass earth, ankles crossed, knees pulled up to my chest. I peered forward at the rhombus-shaped, polished stone. It was difficult to make out the names through my bangs. I'd neglected to cut them and they fell into my eyes. I'd neglected a lot of things lately.

Everything was wrong. I'd never felt so alone in my life.

"I failed, Keitaro," I muttered, and I felt warm tears well in my eyes. "He's gone. You're all gone. I don't know what to do."

My voice quivered and broke. I let the tears slip down my face and suddenly craved my mother's presence, the smell of her perfume, the way she would hold me to her, stroking my hair while she hummed under her breath.

I rested my forehead on my knees, holding them tighter to my chest. I would not sob, not here, but I could not help the tears that rolled down my face, or the excess mucous that was beginning to clog my nose. I could not overcome the feeling of worthlessness and shame and weakness. And the emptiness of being abandoned by everyone I held so dear to me. And so I cried; alone.

A spark of anger ignited in my chest at the memory. If what Sasuke said was true, I truly had been abandoned. My brother had left me all alone to grieve him, to grieve our parents, to grieve Sasuke. He'd just left.

It happened in the blink of an eye. One second I was staring at the empty clearing and the next I was not. There was hardly a flicker of movement. They were just there. Like dark ink on white paper, my attention was drawn to them. The figure was dressed all in black, tall and thin with a katana hanging from their back. Their shaggy, brunette hair blew around his head in the breeze.

My mouth was suddenly dry as I swallowed against my throat. It was suddenly very hard to breathe. And I realized just then that if anything hadn't changed about Uchiha Sasuke, and anything that annoyed me the most, he was still an insufferable know-it-all.

Author's Note:

Thank you wonderful readers for the very lovely reviews! Brownie points to all of you. Your kind words urged me to post this chapter a little early.

So, who had Keitaro being alive? I believe that was wulfmoe. Good job, friend! See you all next chapter!