Rattling chains echoed through the room as Soifon endeavored to hoist herself up and free the chains from the ceiling with all her might. Beads of sweat trickled down her body as she exerted herself, striving to break them loose.
'Come on, just break free,' she whispered. After several hours of relentless effort, Soifon reluctantly allowed her body to slump, realizing the chains remained steadfast despite her endeavors, leaving her wrists abrasively chafed.
Pausing to catch her breath, she surveyed the slight damage inflicted on the ceiling, a testament to her persistence. Taking a brief respite, Soifon allowed herself to drift into momentary reverie.
'It would be beneficial to converse with Suzumebachi, yet the barrier suppressing my spiritual energy poses a formidable obstacle, compounded by my current unavailability of Suzumebachi,' she murmured, opening her eyes as the sound of approaching footsteps reached her.
Soifon's grey eyes narrowed as Danso and Mika approached her. 'Are you talking to yourself, captain?' Danso inquired with an amused grin upon reaching her.
Soifon coldly asked, 'What do you want?' while attempting to pull at the chains to free herself from the ceiling. Danso maintained a calm demeanor as he observed her.
Danso waited for Soifon to calm down before signaling to Mika to unstrap her. Mika nodded in acknowledgment and walked over to the small woman, who gave him a death glare.
'Don't come near me!' Soifon demanded sternly, as Danso turned away. 'Once you release her, bring her to me,' he commanded, glaring at Mika.
'And ensure she doesn't escape,' he warned before exiting the cell, leaving Soifon and Mika alone.
Following his departure, Soifon glared at him and poised to inquire about his intentions, given that she had already shared all the information with the captain and outlined the planned course of action. However, Danso had already left.
With Mika being the only person present, the captain decided to bide her time, anticipating that she could easily escape by seizing the right opportunity. Consequently, she permitted him to release her from the chains, with the intention of utilizing her only available resource.
'Come on, little captain,' Mika urged as he unshackled her feet and then her hands. Subsequently, as the brown-haired man completed the task and prepared to lift her onto his shoulder, Soifon swiftly delivered a powerful kick to his side, catching him off guard.
Seizing the moment, she quickly liberated herself, pushing Mika back with a series of forceful strikes and kicks until he was incapacitated.
Subsequently, she made her way to the stairs, maintaining a concealed presence. With a strategic plan to escape and head towards the Hokage Tower to inform Tsunade, Jushiro, and others of the recent events.
Feeling her legs threatened to give out due to a lack of strength, Soifon could sense her spiritual energy slowly returning, a positive sign. She needed to be cautious not to get caught or be hit with those needles again.
'Alright, Soifon, you can overcome this obstacle by finding a window or another means of escape,' she whispered to herself as she approached the door, realizing there was no large enough window to pass through. Holding her breath, she pushed the door open, wincing as it squeaked loudly.
With eyes closed, she saw the door was open just enough for her to slip through, but then noticed Mika rising from the ground.
'That was not a wise move, little captain,' Mika stated calmly as he advanced towards her, to which Soifon responded with a defiant glare before swiftly dashing out of the door, distancing herself from him.
Upon flash-stepping and carefully maneuvering through the shadows, Soifon found herself behind a pillar where she leaned against it to catch her breath and allow her spiritual energy to replenish. Once she felt ready, she closed her eyes and attempted to communicate with Suzumebachi.
'Suzumebachi, can you hear me?' she mentally inquired, hoping for a response from her Zanpakuto spirit, but received no reply as expected.
"Just as I suspected, not yet strong enough," she murmured to herself before noticing Mika standing nearby.
Observing their interaction, she overheard a blue-haired woman questioning Mika, 'How the hell did you let her kick your ass?' Mika defended himself, 'I didn't anticipate her actions; she acted as if she had no strength left.'
Ava frowned at him and commented, 'You are acting foolish; obviously, as a captain, she is capable of deceiving you.' She quickly assessed the situation, 'Now we must retrieve her before Lord Danso dismisses us for misplacing his special experiment.'
Mika responded, remaining composed despite his partner's agitation, 'We will locate her, Ava, as she cannot have gone far, not even being aware of the way out, and she is most likely exhausting herself.'
Ava affirmed, looking determinedly at him, 'Then let us start searching before she manages to escape,' and swiftly moved away to search for Soifon, who was concealed behind the nearby pillar.
Soifon took a deep breath as she observed them departing to search for her, 'Now is the opportunity to escape,' she whispered to herself, retreating from her hiding place and continuing to navigate her way out of the area.
Observing a window a short distance away, the captain stifled a smirk as she identified it as her way out. She mustered all the remaining energy for her flash step, only to pause at the sound of approaching footsteps and a cane tapping behind her.
'Why is Mika taking so long with the captain?' Danso asked, halting abruptly as he caught sight of Soifon standing before him. Soifon's heart sank as she met Danso's calm gaze and observed his quizzical expression.
'Why are you wandering around? Where is Mika?' Danso's tone hardened as he observed Soifon glancing at the window.
'I am leaving, and you are too old to stop me,' Soifon declared, stepping back while maintaining her focus on Danso, who wore a smirk. 'Is that a fact?' he retorted.
Danse took a step towards Soifon, who glared at him. 'And where do you think you're going in the state that you're in?' Danso asked. Soifon, biting her lip, met his gaze. 'You cannot confine me here,' she stated with her stormy gray eyes.
'If any of my comrades discover this, they will not hesitate to rescue me,' she warned. Danso, maintaining a calm demeanor, responded, 'Is that so?' He nonchalantly dismissed the potential threat, causing Soifon to laugh.
'You underestimate the forces you are dealing with. There are not only another captain and two lieutenants here, but also our head captain, a former captain, and an additional lieutenant for reinforcements,' she explained. Danse chuckled as he glanced at Soifon.
'I am not intimidated by your so-called alliance. Your attempts to frighten me are futile,' he said confidently as he approached the diminutive woman, who, feeling uneasy, backed away from him.
"You should be aware that the former captain was my previous captain and mentor. It would not be ideal for you to be on her bad side," she stated with a smirk while mentioning Yoruichi. She was confident that her mentor would go to great lengths to bring her back.
Danso chuckled, inquiring, "Is that where you developed that confident attitude of yours?" He tightened his grip on his case, causing Ava, the female Anbu, to appear. "There you are, you little troublemaker," he remarked, glaring at Soifon.
Soifon returned the glare as she attempted to flash step towards the window. However, her low spiritual energy hindered her progress. She winced when she saw Ava appear in front of her, swiftly striking the captain's chest with her palms.
"You're not going anywhere. Mika may have let you off easily, but I won't," Ava declared as she sent an electric shock through Soifon's body, eliciting a sharp cry of pain as the electricity coursed through her veins.
The captain collapsed on the floor, her eyes wide with pain and breathing heavily. 'Very good, thank you Ava,' Danso said with a smirk as he looked at the captain.
'Now, if you would be so kind as to take her to the medical wing,' Danso instructed as he turned to head to his private medical wing. Ava picked up Soifon and followed Danso to the medical wing.
Danso and Ava were unaware that they were being watched, and it appeared that Danso had forgotten that he had asked Sai to come see him for a few seconds. 'What the hell are you up to, Danso?' Sai thought as he watched the two walk through the hall towards the medical wing.
Sai couldn't believe what he had just seen – what was Danso doing with Soifon? Then he recalled Tsunade and Kakashi talking about Soifon being kidnapped, and now he knew who had taken her.
'Just hang in there, captain. I'll inform Tsunade, Jushiro, and the others,' he promised and flash-stepped away without being seen.