Kakashi POV.

"Kakashi Sensei!!"

Huh? My head turns as Naruto bursts from the forest edge, my visible eye narrowing as I stand straighter. The Hokage had me and most of the other Jonin handle an attack on the village. A little strange due to the timing and now that Naruto is sprinting toward me, my concerns were just validated.

"It's Aimi! There was an attack on us in the forest and her and Kit sprinted off and she told me to come find you!"

My heart stopped for a moment, a strange feeling of dread and something else building inside me. Something I hadn't felt before. What is it?

"I think she's really in trouble this time Sensei!"

I look down at him, my mind putting pieces together as I look around. The village suffered some minor damage, the culprits caught. That had to be the reason why they attacked, to distract the rest of us so Orochimaru and his followers could take her without additional back up from the Leaf Village. Damn. If they manage to get her under his control, I can only imagine the frightful things to come from it.

"Show me."

I say firmly and Naruto nods, turning without hesitation to sprint away back toward the woods as I follow closely behind him. My feet pounding the earth as my worry builds. I just hope I get there in time.

Aimi's POV.

I wake as if it's an emergency, as if sleeping had become a dangerous thing. My heart beating fast and there is a buzzing in my brain as if Kit had been trying to reach out to me and until now, the other end of the line was dead. I let out a shaky breath, my head pounding with a fury I've never experienced before and don't get me started with my body. The only way I could describe it with any accuracy is what I imagine what someone would feel after being sat on by Gamabunta, the giant toad. Ugh.

"Ah, you're finally awake."

That annoying voice immediately brought me out of my daze, my eyelids quickly opening as my blue eyed gaze shifts to Kabuto.

"Yeah… Thanks for the nap. I was pretty tired."

I say sarcastically as I try to move, my wrists well restrained as I struggle against the leather straps.

"Those are reinforced with Chakra, I wouldn't waste your energy."

"Thanks for letting me know."

I snap angrily, my eyes shifting to look at the dimly lit room. My body currently laying on a metal table with wires and leads attached to my chest and head as monitors surround me, the walls lined with shelves filled with medical equipment and other scary looking things. Just how I expected an evil lair to look. So cliche.

"Where's my fox?!"

"I was wondering when you'd ask that, he's next door. I had to separate the two of you, he was getting rather upset seeing you like this."

How the hell did this dork manage to keep Kit restrained? He's a powerful creature, even in his smaller form. Could the jutsu they were doing in the forest really keep him in a state where he was weak enough to control? There's just no way…

"You better not hurt him."

Kabuto laughs at my threat as he moves closer to me, his hand reaching for a metal syringe filled with an ominous looking liquid. One of which I had no interest in discovering.

"You're in no position to be making threats, little fox. My lord has given me full permission to figure out how you tick. What hurts you, what pushes your buttons and what doesn't."

He pauses as I look at him, my anger building as I try to use my power, my eyes flashing orange for a few seconds before dying back out to blue.

"Aw, is someone tired? Here, let me help you with that. This will wake you up in no time."

He smiles cruelly, my hands balling into fists as the leather restrains creak under the strain. My jaw tightening as I watch his hand press against my head, pressing it forcefully to one side to expose my neck.

"This will sting."

"Don't you dare!"

I growl before I hear him scoff, his other hand moving quickly to press the needle against my neck. The tip piercing my skin as he presses it deeper, his thumb pressing down on the plunger as a burning sensation starts to build.

"What the hell did you just give me?!"

I yell, trying to pull at the restraints again before all the muscles in my body starts to contract, as if they were being flash-burned with acid from the inside out. My internal temperature rising as I try to contain my screams, sweat beads forming on my forehead as I close my eyes, hissing sharply through my teeth to try and remain in some kind of control.

"Interesting…"

Kabuto whispers from beside me as I hear him scratching something on his paper note pad.

"Most people would be screaming and writhing around in pain by now."

He says matter of fact, my nails pressing into my palms as I let out a muffled groan. My entire body trembling as the burning sensation increases with each passing moment.

"Maybe you should up the dose."

There was a second voice in the room now, my eyes ripping open to see Orochimaru standing at my feet. His face almost expressionless except for his eyes. His yellow snake eyes are dull, flat, and lifeless. The spark that gives life to a regular person's eyes like Kakashi or Naruto is missing from him as he is a person with evil, cruel intentions. They are hollow – as though something had been taken away from them and I didn't want to look into them for too long to figure that out. Even in this low light, I was still able to see how cold and heartless he is, with nothing of humanity reflected in his predatory gaze. It is… haunting.

"No…"

I groan, still managing to fight off the urge to scream in unbearable agony. I had to stay strong, I had to find a way out.

"Oh my dear, that wasn't a question. It was an order."

Kabuto nods as he turns away, preparing another dose as I glare at my captor who stands confidently at my feet. Trying to keep up this facade of bravery and determination, I want to shield myself from that vulnerability, to hide my weakness but my body language and expressions only give away the suffering I'm experiencing.

"Hold still."

I pull at the restraints again as Kabuto presses his cold hand against my head, turning it to the side once again as he draws the syringe closer. My body becomes rigid in anticipation as the previous dose was still inflicting immense pain and with the second dose? I'm not feeling hugely convinced that this next lot was going to ease that.

"You're already doing better than most, let's see how much further we can push you."

Orochimaru states coldly as he steps to the side, his icy fingers wrapping tightly around my arm as Kabuto pierces my skin again with the needle, pushing the toxin into my blood stream for the second time as I gaze at them with wide open, glassy eyes.

"Just a few more moments and-…"

His words are cut off as I scream in agony. I try my hardest to hold it in, to stay in control, to not give them the satisfaction but the scream rips out of me nonetheless. It's animalistic and loud, raw and primal. I can't stop it, I can't even control it, it just happens as it spills out of me in a moment of desperation. The pain all-encompassing, overwhelming. I try to draw air to my lungs, but no matter how deep I try to breathe, it feels like there is never enough air and each breath gets more and more difficult.

"That's more like it."

Orochimaru speaks but I can't hear anything but my own screams. My voice growing hoarse and my throat is burning, I couldn't keep it in anymore. I couldn't fight back. I felt my sanity slipping away as Kits sad cries fills my ears as he hears me scream, which only adds to my pain. The feeling of my heart breaking into a million pieces pushing my exhausted, tortured body over the edge.

"It seems our little fox is close to breaking point, my lord."

Kabuto wasn't wrong, my body was done. What felt like hours and hours of suffering had finally been replaced with a moment of sweet release. A cool calmness washing over me as my muscles start to relax, the burning agony replaced with a heaviness as my senses dull, my mind thick in a haze as I start to detach myself from my surroundings as I transition from pain to unconsciousness. I wasn't going to fight it, it's a welcome escape for me and while Kits cries continue to vibrate through me like tuning fork, I allowed myself to slip into the darkness as I fell into the void.