Mari Makinami
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Chapter 8. Lucid Dream
"And why would I want to heal her anyway?"
The question was actually pretty reasonable. Karin's healing abilities were pretty unusual: in order to heal somebody, she had to let the person bite her to be able to receive the Uzumaki girl's potent chakra which was capable of healing one's body and restored own chakra reserves.
It was a rare occasion when she allowed somebody to do that: the person had to be really dear and important to her, or there had to be a very, very good reason to it. That's why Karin healed Sasuke this way quite a few times in their past.
The Hyūga girl, however, was a different story.
It's not that Karin had some grudge against her specifically: the black haired kunoichi just didn't appear to be in a critical condition anyway, not to mention that being awakened in the middle of the night also didn't make this situation, as well as the mood of this Uzumaki clan's offspring who was well known for her temper any better.
If it was happening a few years ago, when Sasuke was younger, he would simply threaten her to do the job, or use a genjutsu to force her.
Now, though, he was different. Even though it was still hard for him, the Uchiha already was able to see the world from another person's point of view if he tried to.
Which is why he calmed himself down instead of making any big moves, taking a deep breath and uttering:
“If you don't heal her right now, her death is inevitable. I need her alive. It's crucial for my plans, so you and Orochimaru must save her.”
He still wasn't going to ask. The snake sannin owed him too much for being revived and spared after the war, and Karin, well...
Even though the way he treated her during his fight against Danzo wasn't too polite and gentle, it still served her right after years of stalking and trying to make him sleep with her multiple times. And she managed to survive that, after all, didn't she?.. No problem here at all.
“Inevitable?.. Is she a jinchūriki? We can't help her if this is the case, Sasu...”
“Karin, I'm afraid we don't have much time to talk right now.” Orochimaru snapped, interrupting her and suddenly becoming serious. “Come here and start healing the child, we'll be able to chat about everything later.” He ordered, unbuttoning Hinata's cloak with his left hand, while the white fingers of his right arm flashed with blue chakra. The girl obeyed, sighing in defeat and coming closer to them.
“Sasuke-kun... I'll be needing to have direct access to her heart, so you might want to turn away if you haven't seen the girl naked before. Not to mention that the show of cutting through her chest can be pretty disturbing to watch. Although...” He turned to his red haired assistant, smirking. “Knowing your tastes, you might even like it.”
“Hn.” The Uchiha didn't reply anything, silently putting his right arm in the pocket of his coat and staring at Hinata's pained face.
He nearly missed his old master's sense of humor and his vile jokes. And Karin obviously didn't follow the last one, being too busy with preparing her jutsu.
At least it was a relief to him, this sudden nostalgic feeling.
As well as the view of Hinata's exposed breasts when Orochimaru has torn her shirt apart, which made the boy's heart beat even faster. Fortunately the other two in the room were too occupied to notice him slightly blushing.
But the pleasant picture didn't last for too long: just like a perfect scalpel, the fingers of the snake sannin cut through the girl's chest, his left hand forming a few signs while his right palm made her way to the girl's heart.
“Karin, start it right now.”
“Sure, sure...” She mumbled in response, hitting a certain spot on the Hyūga's neck, thus making Hinata reflexively bite her hand, and starting to heal the dying girl as she was ordered to.
After a few seconds of some manipulations with chakra that were foreign to the Uchiha, Orochimaru suddenly frowned a little.
“Sasuke-kun... It's actually worse than you originally thought. If you came here five minutes later, she would indeed definitely die.”
The boy's brow twitched. This was most certainly a valuable piece of information, especially at this tense moment. As if he wasn't feeling bad enough...
“Well?” He snapped, glancing at his former master.
Orochimaru smiled, pulling the test-tube's cork out with his thumb.
“Fortunately enough, I know what exactly she's been poisoned with. If anything, I had invented this thing myself about twenty years ago: certain people from the highest echelons of Konoha ordered it... Though I'm pretty sure that you've already figured out who exactly did.”
The Uchiha's eyes widened in surprise and shock.
It all suddenly made sense to him.
Just like Danzo, and probably like many of the other major figures in Konoha, Hiashi remained in close contact with Orochimaru after his former sensei had left the village.
So that's why he...
“But you are correct: I know what needs to be done to save her, and we will absolutely make it... With a bit of your help. Basically, you already know that the substance itself works only on people with certain sets of genes. Since you've drained her chakra out, which was a brilliant decision on your part: you might not notice it yourself yet, but you're currently under it's effects as well. It made you a little emotionally unstable, and it will also make you feel sick shortly. But your life is not in any danger, unlike hers.”
So that's why he became so nervous and felt so uneasy all of sudden?.. It explained a lot: without being able to stay cool and collected as usual, Sasuke felt extremely uncomfortable, and it only strengthened the effect.
“As you also well know, I've been venturing into the mystery of the Sage of the Six Paths through my whole life... And I came to the conclusion that, despite what the legends say about the man, he wasn't the origin of all chakra, and neither was the jūbi. The progenitor's abilities and genes were divided in different proportions among his or her ancestors... One of them being the Sage himself. But I'm sure you already know this.” He spilled the contents of the test-tube into the cut in Hinata's chest, handing the empty vial to Sasuke and weaving a few signs with his free hand again.
“But there were more than the Sage, Uchiha and Senju. Although these clans are known to be the strongest ones in the world, Hyūga are the descendants too, as well as the now dead bloodlines... Which are of no importance anymore. Basically... Originally this poison was invented to take the rogue Main House Hyūga down without having much trouble, since only the most exceptional ones of them were able to escape the clan, with all their secrecy. Which is why I tried to made it work in a specific way: to make the Hyūga genes have the highest priority in extermination, higher than those of any other bloodline that roots from the progenitor. But that would be impossible to completely negate the effects it could cause if used on those who possess the Uchiha or Senju blood, since you all are distant relatives, no matter what. But, simplifying it, the less Hyūga blood you have in your veins, the less it hurts. Still... “ He smirked. “I think I could be proud of the fact that I've created something that could potentially weaken or even kill the one who gave birth to the Sage of the Six Paths no less.”
Sasuke narrowed his eyes, hearing the sannin's words.
So the said progenitor was obviously Kaguya. Considering that she had the Byakugan, and Hagoromo didn't inherit it, it was probably Hamura who was born with those eyes, as well as the said “other bloodlines”. And just like the Uchiha began with Indra, the Hyūga must be the descendants of Hamura's child. The real question wasn't about the other bloodlines, but... Considering what Hagoromo told him when Sasuke was on brink of death, If Hamura, as well as his clan, went to the moon to protect Kaguya's shell, how did his heirs end up living on Earth?
And then this wonderful invention of Orochimaru that came up in the most unsuitable moment possible...
He sighed in the irony.
If only they had this poison back when they fought Kaguya... It would probably make it much less of a trouble for Team Seven.
Orochimaru was truly a genius in his own way, just like the other two of the sannin... And just like Itachi always taught him, everyone and everything had a weakness.
But, of course, once they had sealed Kaguya, they've decided to not mention her existence to anyone in their world. Such knowledge could and most likely would lead to another catastrophe in future. That's why for everyone aside from the four of them and the bijū, the war ended with Madara's downfall.
Yet still, Orochimaru was able to get so far in his assumptions that he now was dangerously close to discovering the truth on his own...
But Sasuke wasn't going to open this secret to his former master no matter what, especially knowing the man's twisted passion for knowledge and power. And if he figured it out himself... He'd need to be dealt with.
Deep in these grim thoughts, Sasuke lowered his eyes to the vial in his hand for a moment, looking at the accurately written inscription on it.
The Uchiha gasped, seeing the familiar name.
“It... It's his!..”
So this was what he planned to do with Hinata?..
But it never worked with anyone before, what made this madman think it was possible now? Was it her Byakugan? Or something else?..
Sasuke felt a bit confused, but something in the corner of his mind told him that he has just handed the sannin a perfect opportunity to complete one of the experiments he craved to do in the past, when the Uchiha was still his student.
Orochimaru smiled again, nodding.
“His, indeed. I told you, this is going to enhance her abilities in future. In a way, you could compare it to what Madara did after his fight against the Shodai Hokage. Just like the DNA of Hashirama who was able to awaken the unique kekkei genkai increases the power and endurance of Sharingan, these cells will empower her Byakugan, too, and it might as well give her quite a few new abilities. If she wasn't a Hyūga, it would either do nothing at all or simply kill her, but... The effect may also be entirely different from our expectations, we can never know what exactly is going to happen when we combine these pieces together. I'm pretty excited to see it myself, to be honest, and we don't have any other choice anyway. Now, come here.” Sasuke took a step closer, looking at Hinata's deathly pale face.
“Since you possess the Rinnegan now, it is clear that you've received a piece of power of the Sage, so your chakra is going to be our trump card here, and it will work even better than mine when we put the seal on her. Combined with this DNA sample that's now rapidly adapting to her own genes, it will make them merge faster, and, as I've just explained it to you, it will force the poison to consider her cells belonging to someone from a different bloodline, which is more than enough for her to survive until it gets out of her system. Now, use your left eye's ability on me: focus on the specific memory of how the required Cursed Seal is being performed, and then do it right away.” The Uchiha did as he was told, distantly realizing as he came close to Hinata that the legend about the Rinnegan granting it's owner the ability to learn every jutsu in the world was probably a reference to the Human Path.
“You will have to bite her neck or any other spot you find suitable, and then make your chakra flow inside her body: the only requirement for this is that the seal must be put on the skin directly above a tenketsu point, otherwise it's not going to work. And one more thing: avoid giving her own chakra back for now – it could accidently kill her.” He stepped aside, making a welcoming sign. “Whenever you're ready, Sasuke-kun.”
He gave the sannin a nod full of resolve, although he still felt way too nervous for something that simple. Was it the effect of the tainted chakra flowing through his own system, or did the thought of biting Hinata's neck really excite him that much? Especially after the image of her beautiful chest was already burned into his mind thanks to the Sharingan...
“You better hurry up a bit, Sasuke! I don't have tons of chakra to stay up the whole night, you know!” Karin blurted, and the Uchiha quickly bowed down. Waving the strands of Hinata's now wet and messy hair away, he touched his student's thin neck with his lips. Her skin was really soft and pleasant to...
What in the burning hell he was thinking about?! He had to save her life!
The Uchiha vigorously bit the girl, the taste of her blood on his tongue making it a little... Disturbing to the teen.
Why was he thinking of her this way all of sudden?
Sure, through his whole life, his head and heart were always too busy with different things: first, his brother, next, his revenge to Konoha, and then the war... And finally it's consequences.
It's not that Sasuke didn't appreciate good looking women... Just like any other boy of his age, he did, but he always had more important things lying ahead that needed to be handled. He simply didn't consider himself being born for romantic stuff. And, come to think of it, it was a rare occasion for him to meet a female that he could consider worthy of his attention, the vast army of his fan girls obviously not included in this count.
Of course, ever since the years in the academy, he knew that one day he'd have to revive the clan, and, of course, he knew how exactly it's supposed to be done. But back then, it seemed to be so far away in future... A future he could possibly not live up to.
Considering how disciplined and purposeful he was, Sasuke never actually thought of any girl in this way.
Until now, which was nearly driving him crazy inside.
Was that how this poison was supposed to work anyway?.. To mess with his head?
He'd easily prefer to suffer some physical pain rather than this uncomfortable realization in a situation like this, with irritated Karin and smirking Orochimaru nearby.
“Now, now, Sasuke-kun... Don't get too carried away. You've already finished your job, now back off and let us patch your girl for good. She will live now, there is nothing for you to worry about anymore. You can enjoy her young body later on when she's awake, doing it until then is not too polite, after all.”
He nearly jumped away in embarrassment without even looking at the strange pattern of the seal on Hinata's neck that looked much unlike the one he had in the past, and, keeping his usual calm and emotionless face, turned around.
“I need some rest now. Finish the job and meet me afterwards, Orochimaru. We need to talk.”
He walked out of the hall, the thoughtful gaze of Karin who didn't dare to interrupt her two superiors following his back.
Passing through the heavy doors, the Uchiha walked the tunnel for a few minutes before finally stopping and slamming his fist into the yellow, patterned brick in the wall, making it crack under his sudden blow. The teen clenched his teeth, moaning in frustration and leaning against the now damaged wall.
What on earth was happening to him?..
It was so unlike his usual personality, and well... So incredibly weird. It was also nearly scaring. Not the feeling itself, but his lack of experience and knowledge and hence the inability to come up with a plan, a solution to this problem.
But then again, come to think of it rationally, he hasn't slept for nearly three full days by now, and he also had that dire chakra affecting him more and more with each minute passing, not to mention his bloody hormones that decided to start raging in such ridiculous situation all of sudden.
He probably just needed a good sleep.
Yes, that had to be it.
He slid down the wall, lying onto the floor and using his only arm as a pillow.
Orochimaru was right: he was feeling sick, even physically now. The lack of rest along with the corrupted chakra made the reality seem more like some lucid dream for him.
The last thing he reminded himself of before falling into the abyss of nightmares was that he still needed Orochimaru to have a private talk with him afterwards.
There was a reason aside from Hinata why he came to this hideout.
And it was far more important than the Hyūga girl.
____________________________________________________________________________
She didn't know how many hours, days or months she spent in the nightmare that devoured her shortly after Sasuke grabbed her and put on his shoulder like a sack of some vegetables.
First, when the darkness embraced the girl, she believed that death finally came for her, and this was hell.
And this thought was only natural: the pain she suffered was impossible to describe.
But then, after what seemed like a few days of unstoppable torture, she started adapting to it, the images she began to notice in the dark void around her diverting Hinata's attention from her physical sensations.
In the beginning, there were just some small, unconnected fragments, mere shards of her past life from the very childhood and to the war. It looked like some slide show that she witnessed just like people in the stories she heard many times: those who went through near death experience and managed to survive told that they were watching their whole life passing before their eyes within what they assumed to be their last seconds in this world.
But then they started to be more focused, more specific and concrete.
And watching it like some sort of a movie gave her the understanding of things she never even payed any attention to.
First, the girl realized that she, in fact, never had any real friends. Sure, there were Kiba and Shino, but truth to be told, those two were the best mates, while she always stood a bit aside from them. Always the special female teammate they needed to protect.
She was a burden to them.
Yet still, they were the only ones who she could at least remotely call her friends until recently. They actually interacted, chatted, spent some time together, were having fun. And the fact that she was never close enough with either of them couldn't take it away.
But aside from them, she had nobody at all.
Her so-called sensei? As a matter of fact, Kurenai barely taught her anything aside from the basics that every decent genin knew anyway, and, being completely honest, the woman was never that good of a kunoichi. The role of mother that she took a year ago suited her much better, and that was respectable enough - especially from Hinata's point of view, since she could barely remember her own mother, so in her opinion, taking care of a child was a very important thing.
They were never close, either. Of course, the now former jōnin always was nice to her students, but lately Hinata realized that kindness and gentleness were of little to no importance in their world.
Hanabi, she despised her older sister. Ever since their childhood, even though they were somehow getting along in the last few years, it was still fairly obvious. Now, she was going to take the role of the head of the clan, and Hinata had no doubt that her younger sibling wouldn't cancel her father's orders on taking her down once she acquires the position of leadership.
Hiashi... There wasn't much to tell about him. She was a disgrace to her father, as well as for her whole clan. Of course, she understood his every decision, and, even though it still hurt her quite a lot, she held no grudge in her heart for him specifically. Sure, she deeply hated her whole twisted and corrupted clan by now, but her father was merely a cogwheel in this dire system that needed to be either changed completely or destroyed permanently.
Kō... He, on the other hand, seemed to be the only one from the clan who always deeply loved her. Watching through all the moments they shared together, ever since she was a toddler, Hinata never noticed any ill intent coming from him.
Which only made his betrayal even more sinister, seeing as even this man was disappointed enough to agree to kill her in the end. And he did it with apparent pleasure in his eyes...
His betrayal was the final drop in the sea of emotions that she kept hidden from everyone for so many years. They were overwhelming her now, and only when the girl was on the threshold of the afterlife, she was able to finally understand herself, to realize who she really was.
And no matter how strongly she desired to make him pay... Even though back then she was still going to do it one day, she spared his life back in the hotel because he made her realize a very important thing. What he did helped her understand that there was no love in their world.
No light, no hope, no happy endings.
Not for a ninja.
Come to think about it, since the very beginning they were taught that their whole existence was merely about being a tool. A tool that had to either do the job it was payed for, or to die trying.
Yes, it was that simple. There was nothing else.
Aside from loyalty.
And Neji was the prime example here. He died for her because he was loyal enough to sacrifice his life to prolong her own pitiful existence, because this was what he believed he was born to do. It was his debt. He was her loyal brother from the Branch House, and the Branch House always served to protect the Main Hose, they had no other purpose.
Simple as that.
And her love for him, every single emotion she felt for the now dead boy, they were truthful, yet still irrelevant. Not in their world, not in this clan. Not when both of them were ninjas.
Which is why she was going to bury her feelings for good, finally getting over his death.
No matter how you look at it, he died a more than decent death, serving the purpose that was given to him by fate itself until the very end.
She will always honor him for that.
And then...
And then there was Naruto.
The girl barely managed to hold an ironic smirk.
She now also understood how delusional she was before. His image, his strong character always inspired her to dream.
To dream of becoming strong. To dream of a happy life. To dream that one day, she would be powerful and courageous enough to pass through all the obstacles on the way to her own distant dreams and goals, just like he always did.
Hinata wanted to become his equal, and she always mistook it for desire to actually be with him.
For loving him.
Which was false, she finally realized. Despite watching him so closely for so many years, the Hyūga girl still barely knew the boy, and she most certainly didn't understand what was going deep down in his soul.
But it was his fate to make his dreams come true. Not hers.
She was too much different from him to be able to walk the same path, it was never possible to begin with.
That's why she always failed. She was such a fool.
Because she lived in an illusionary, nonexistent world.
And this was the point where he had come.
Uchiha Sasuke. The man that gave her a second birth. The one who fate itself brought her to. The one who helped her to stay strong and to finally find her real self under all the shells and veils she covered herself with through her whole life.
He was truly her everything now, and the only true regret she still had was her death, because she couldn't serve him any longer. Couldn't make him proud. Couldn't become his loyal tool. Couldn't at least repay him for everything he did for her, for giving her a purpose and for becoming it at the same time.
She couldn't stay with him...
And if by some incredible, impossible miracle she would manage to get out of this hell, she was sure of two things.
First, she belonged to him.
And second, her clan was going to pay. To pay for everything they did to her, to Neji, to all the Branch House members that died a pointless death, protecting their worthless, filthy lives.
There would nothing but Uchiha Sasuke and her revenge in her live anymore.
And just as the Hyūga girl realized this simple truth, the visions of her past were gone.
But then she gasped, because in the seemingly endless darkness, a mysterious figure suddenly appeared out of nowhere just before her.
It was a boy, or rather a man, probably a few years older than her. He was dressed in long, white robe with multiple black commas on the cuffs, collar and hem.
His hair was black, long and wild, with a few strands near his face tied with red ribbons.
There were also weird dark markings around his eyes, and the eyes themselves...
It was the Sharingan.
She began trembling, because she now realized that he resembled the man from her past nightmares.
Uchiha Madara.
Yet at the same time...
He looked much like Sasuke, too.
If anything, both of them looked pretty similar to this man that now looked at her with a curious, yet a bit bored expression.
Who on earth was he?.. Why was she seeing him?
But then he started to disappear, and at the same moment, she felt some strong, cold, yet burning at the same time chakra spreading through her body, calming down the pain completely.
And then there was nothing else but complete darkness.
But she most certainly felt someone's blood in her mouth, and her teeth were biting flesh.
Hinata's eyes snapped open, someone's limb leaving her mouth the same second, followed by hard cough of hers.
“Sh-h-h, easy... About damn time, for ****'s sake. How are you feeling? Can you see me?” A female voice asked, making Hinata wipe her eyes that were stained with gore and tears with her hands which were barely able to move, as if lead was flowing through them instead of blood.
“Y-yes... I think I can...” The Hyūga hissed, her voice not obeying her will at the moment. She focused her gaze on the pretty girl with glasses, that was dressed in blue pajamas, her long, wild red hair looking quite messy, as if she hasn't brushed it for at least a week.
The girl nodded, opening Hinata's eyelids wider with her feelings and checking her eyes carefully.
“Fine... I guess we've managed to patch you after all. Sasuke will have to be pleased when he finds out... Orochimaru-sama even managed to save your eyes. Incredible...”
Sasuke? And... Orochimaru?!
The Hyūga was now sure that she actually somehow managed to survive the poison.
Exactly like the Uchiha had promised... He saved her again.
It made her heart fill with warmth that she didn't to be there anymore, yet despite everything she realized in her... Dreams? Hallucinations? She decided to leave it be for now.
There were far more important things for her to think about at the moment.
“Where am I? Is this... Orochimaru's hideout? Did Sasuke-san bring me here?”
The other girl nodded, finally sitting back to the chair near the couch where Hinata was lying, and, putting one leg on the other, she leaned against the backrest, sighing deeply.
“Yeah, something like that... But who are you, actually? Sasuke seemed to be pretty worried about your well being, so...”
“Where is he now?” Hinata interrupted her, eying her strange nurse with resolve.
The girl winced and shrugged, looking up at the ceiling.
“He said he was going to have some rest while we were finishing saving your life... He spent quite some amount of chakra on this seal on your neck, without which we would likely fail. Makes me wonder what's so special about you for him to be so worried about your life. I've never seen him like that before. But you still haven't answered my question, and it's not quite polite of you, considering that without me nursing you the whole night, you would most likely die here.”
Worried?.. The seal?..
Hinata instantly felt the itching on the right side of her neck, reflexively touching it with her numb fingers.
There was some strong chakra, and it was quite familiar, too. Where did she meet it before?..
“So?” The red haired girl finally snapped, losing her patience with the weird Hyūga that didn't seem to appreciate her efforts of being friendly.
“I'm his apprentice... And servant. I'm not aware why he decided to do so much to save me, really. I'm nothing special.”
The girl with glasses scratched her chin thoughtfully, peering at Hinata.
“Nothing special, you say?.. Well, I doubt it. It's unlike Sasuke to care for someone who is not very dear to him. Perhaps...” She smirked devilishly, tapping the Hyūga's arm with her forefinger. “Perhaps he likes you? It would make some sense at least.”
Sasuke? Likes? Her? Was this girl totally nuts?..
“I don't think so, healer-san. Perhaps he just has some plans for me of which I'm not aware yet.”
Yes, that certainly seemed more like the truth to her.
“Yeah, could be... Anyway, it's Sasuke's business, and I don't wanna meddle into it unless he lets me in himself. Even though we were teammates in the past, I spent some time thinking, and well, I've decided that he's a smart boy, and strong enough to be able to handle everything without our aid – and he knows where to come if he needs us. And, anyway, it's impossible to get to his heart if he himself doesn't want it, so the best thing I can do is to just wait for him to make his decisions, no matter what they are. Anything else doesn't work with him, so...”
Teammates?.. Pinkish red hair.... His heart?..
Sakura?!..
Was she still hallucinating because of the poison?
“Um, excuse me... I still don't know your name...” Hinata asked carefully, afraid to hear the confirmation of her worries.
“Eh?” The girl seemed to be a bit displeased by another sudden interruption of her seemingly endless monologue, yet still she decided that Hinata had a point there, so, fixing the glasses on her nose, she uttered with an expression filled with importance:
“The name of your savior is Karin. Uzumaki Karin. And, well, Orochimaru-sama and Sasuke were useful, too, but you should remember me, girl!”
Uzumaki?.. So she was one of the leftovers of the formerly famous clan, legacy of which was still praised in Konoha, and she was also a relative of Naruto.
Hinata now remembered the name, since Sasuke mentioned her along with the other members of Team Taka one day.
According to his words, this girl was a weirdo with her moments, but she was pretty nice... And well, could Hinata really call another girl weird considering who she herself was?..
The Hyūga smiled with the corners of her mouth, nodding her head in appreciation.
“Thank you, Karin-san. I will remember it for sure.”
“Karin is just fine, no need to be so formal! And what's your name, by the way?”
The black haired girl smirked, looking in her healer's cheerful eyes.
“My name is Hinata.”
___________________________________________________________________
It was a pretty rash assumption on Sasuke's part that sleep would save him from everything that was ravaging his mind that night. Of course, he had little choice there: the Uchiha was way too exhausted to stay up any longer, the fact that he didn't even bother to find himself a room and decided to fall asleep right in the tunnel instead speaking for himself, yet still he didn't expect it to be that bad.
The unfamiliar feeling of desire for Hinata's body was gone, at least for the time being.
Instead, he was seeing visions which attempted to place seeds of doubt about different things in his heart, including his new student.
And he hated hesitance, especially his own.
He was Uchiha Sasuke, after all.
He never wavered, and he most certainly wasn't going to start it now.
That's why his dreams or visions, whatever they were... They only irritated him, spoiling the man's rest, but they weren't able to get under his skin.
If anything, at some point, he began feeling the increasing boredom, watching for the hundredth time those memories of Itachi which his revived brother shared with him before he left Sasuke in Kabuto's cave, and this was when the Uchiha decided that it had to be stopped.
And just as he activated his Sharingan within another dream, the reality around him began shattering into small pieces, leaving nothing but shining dust that was blown away by his will.
Nothing could mess with his mind.
And certainly not some drug made by Orochimaru, even though a very strong one.
He was past this stuff long ago, during his own training with the sannin, being his test subject for quite a while.
Opening his eyes, the Uchiha found himself in a rather comfortable bed, peering at the dark ceiling of the unfamiliar room.
“I see you're finally awake. Welcome back, Sasuke.” A calm voice to his left greeted him, making the Uchiha give a barely visible smirk in response.
“Did you get me here, Jūgo?” He asked, yawning.
“Yes, I did. I assumed that it's not too healthy to sleep on the floor of the cold passage, you could've caught a cold.”
“Ha-ha... Very funny.” He sat up, trying to stretch his stiff body. “How long I was out?”
The orange haired man that stood near the entrance of the room, leaning against the wall, shrugged.
“A few hours, I guess. Suigetsu came here to visit you, but then Orochimaru-sama called him for some aid. I think they should be here soon enough.”
“Great...” He yawned again, getting up from the bed: he found himself almost undressed, wearing only his pants at the moment. “How is Hinata?”
Jūgo blinked in slight confusion, not realizing first who Sasuke was talking about.
“The girl you brought here?”
“Yeah.”
“She's alright, as far as I know. Karin is staying with her to provide the necessary support.” His voice was calm and indifferent, as usual.
Sasuke nodded, picking his shirt up from the bedside table.
“Good. I hope she gets up as soon as possible. We don't have much free time.”
“Leaving us too soon, Sasuke-kun?” The familiar mocking voice asked as Orochimaru entered the room along with the white haired boy who looked tired and displeased with something.
The Uchiha nodded again, buttoning the shirt.
“Yeah. But I need you to do something for me first.”
“My, didn't I already do something for you tonight? You could at least give some rest to your old sensei, Sasuke-kun...”
The Uchiha smirked, putting his dark coat on.
“Don't worry. It won't take long. I just want to ask a few questions, and then to revive a certain man who I must interrogate.”
“Oh?” The sannin now looked intrigued, finally becoming more serious. “What's this about?”
The Uchiha walked towards the doorway, getting out of the room and making a sign for the others to follow him.
“I've found a guy, some Kiri nin that had the Uchiha crest on his skin. Do you know what that could be?”
Orochimaru was silent for a few seconds, thinking, before slightly shaking his head.
“Could be anything, really. There were a lot of Uchiha admirers before the clan has been purged. Why didn't you ask him yourself?”
Yeah, and you were one of the admirers, weren't you?
“I had to kill him before I was able to interrogate the man. That's why I decided that you should revive him so I can do it. I've got his blood sample.”
“Oh?.. And who will be sacrificed for the jutsu?”
“Aoda holds him captive. That's why I need some space to summon him.”
“Then we should go this way.” The four of them turned to the left, entering a huge, empty hall a few seconds later.
Sasuke then bit his thumb, slamming his palm onto the floor of the accommodation.
“Kuchiyose no Jutsu!” The large, dark blue snake appeared in the middle of the hall, bowing it's head down in respect.
“Sasuke-sama, Orochimaru-sama. I'm at your service.”
The sannin smirked, cocking his head to the right.
“Long time no see, Aoda-chan... I see you grew pretty big.” If Sasuke knew less about these snakes, he would've thought that Aoda was embarrassed by his words.
“Aoda... Is the man I asked you to keep a few weeks ago still alive?”
“Yes, Sasuke-sama. Here he is...” The snake opened it's maw, the long, forked tongue unrolling and thus making the unconscious Gatō who was covered with slime fall down to the floor.
The Uchiha nodded approvingly, coming closer to the man who was barely alive.
“Good job. Orochimaru, you can begin.” He handed his former teacher the scroll that contained the sealed blood and stepped away.
The sannin smirked, shaking his head a bit and taking the piece of paper from Sasuke's hand.
“So bossy nowadays, huh... Fine.” He came closer to the man who he didn't recognize, weaving a few signs and preparing his technique.
“Edo Tensei no Jutsu!” Gatō suddenly awakened, screaming in horrible pain and fear for the last time in his life as his body was being covered with pieces of impure snippets of the shinobi who Sasuke killed in Nami no Kuni.
“Wha... What?.. Where am I?..”
The Uchiha came closer to the revived man with calm and collected expression that didn't give away any emotions.
“It doesn't matter now. You've been summoned to this world from the afterlife. My name is Uchiha Sasuke. I'm the one who killed you in the Land of Waves.”
The man's distinctive black eyes snapped open in fear and anger, apparently recognizing Sasuke.
“What... You killed me?! You're the one who came to save that ***** back then... Wait. What did you say? An Uchiha?..”
Sasuke's visible eye flashed with red as he activated the Sharingan.
“Yeah. Make no mistake: you are under my control, and you will be brought back to where you were summoned from once I'm done with you. So I recommend you to not waste any time, for the sake of both of us. Your task is simple: answer my questions, don't ask any. Is it clear?”
The shinobi clenched his teeth, though nodding in agreement a second later.
“Good. Now, tell me, are you an Uchiha?”
“No.”
“What's your name?”
“Kaji.”
“Why do you have that mark on your nape?”
“My father put it there back when I was a kid.”
“Why?”
“Because it's a mark of his clan.”
Sasuke's eyes narrowed.
“But you said you're not an Uchiha. Yet your father was one?”
“Yes.”
“That makes you adopted.” It made sense now.
“Correct. The mark was put on me so that I have something to prove my name, since I don't have the bloodline.”
“How come an Uchiha adopted you?”
The shinobi shrugged indifferently.
“He always said that he was on a special mission, but I think he was an outcast. He found me in a camp of some thugs: I was supposed to be their slave, but he saved me. We lived on the ruins of a village that's been destroyed shortly before he found me, and he was the only Uchiha who lived a life of hermit as far as I know. During one of our rare travels together, we've been ambushed and got separated, so shinobi of Kiri captured me. They held me in their village for a few years before I agreed to work for them. It was better than dying or being a slave, you know. But I've never seen dad again after that.”
Sasuke frowned, hearing the man's story. An outcast? He never thought that there could be outcasts from his clan. Was there any chance that they were still alive, at least some of them? At least this man? Or did Itachi find and kill them as well during his years in Akatsuki? That was a good question.
“Do you think he's still alive?”
The man shrugged again.
“May be. But if he is, then he's pretty old by now. Fifty-something, I think.”
“That doesn't necessarily mean that he's old, though.” Orochimaru smirked, reminding them of his presence.
But Sasuke ignored his comment, focusing on the man before himself.
“Where is that village where you lived back then?”
“Not too far away from the place where you killed me. That village was named Uzushiogakure...”
Uzushio?.. The village of Karin and Naruto's clan, then?
“...but if you decide to go there and search for my old man, don't bother. I tried to, and he wasn't there. Plus, there are quite a few traps we've set around our home, so it's unsafe to enter there, even for me – I don't remember the place that well after so many years.”
Sasuke nodded, thinking over the information he received.
If there was at least one outcast who could still be alive, he had to look for him. But what was more important... There could be more of them spread around the world. And this man's adoptive father certainly could know more. He needed to find him, or at least his traces. It was the keystone to his finally determined goal.
He had to look for other possible survivors of his clan, and they needed to be brought back to Konoha to help him revive the clan.
Sasuke was no fool: he realized that making it on his own wasn't a trivial task. It would force him to use one of a few ways, each of them being pretty doubtful.
He could get himself a wife – that would be pretty easy, and he could've already done that with Sakura, for example, who was a pretty strong kunoichi, not to mention that she, of that he was sure, would gladly agree to do it for him. But how many children could she produce? Three? Four? Even if it was ten, they would still be merely a bunch of children. Too vulnerable to assume that it would be enough to ensure the survival of the clan no matter what. So this way wasn't too secure.
Then again, he could get himself like a dozen of wives and produce a hundred of children in order to make an amount big enough so that at least some of them would definitely survive in their world that was still very dangerous, but no law would allow it in any of the civilized countries and their Hidden Villages, especially in Konoha. And he wanted his clan to stay in the village no matter what. So that idea was pure idiocy.
But there could be another way, and judging by what he's just heard, Sasuke saw a great opportunity.
With him being the only mature male in the clan, his death would likely mean the end of the Uchiha even if he managed to impregnate somebody now. Considering all the chances in the world where they lived, there was a strong possibility that the child wouldn't even live long enough to become mature.
In other words, he was the weak link, and he would be one in either way he considered for his plans.
But if there were more mature Uchiha who were able to produce posterity, the chances of the clan's survival and revival increased significantly.
That's what he thought back in the dungeon where he killed this man that was now standing before him, brought back from the world of dead.
And if there was a chance to find at least one more man who had the genes of Uchiha, even if he was weak or wasn't shinobi at all, he had to do everything within his power to do it.
That's why the information he got from this dead man was truly priceless, and, for the first time in weeks, it made him sincerely smile.
“Fine. Thank you for telling me this. Not gonna say that I'm sorry for killing you, since you deserved it by attacking my comrade... But you're forgiven now. Orochimaru, you can take him away.”
The sannin nodded, not giving any signs to show if he realized what Sasuke was now thinking or not.
“Would you mind if I add him to my arsenal?”
Sasuke shrugged, turning away from the shinobi who looked angered, but didn't say anything, probably realizing that it would be pointless considering all the circumstances.
“Suit yourself.”
The sannin smirked, weaving a few hand signs: a huge wooden coffin appeared behind the Kiri nin, capturing his artificial body and disappearing underground a moment later.
And just as it did, the big doors opened, Karin and Hinata entering the hall.
“It's done, Orochimaru-sama, Sasuke. She's fine and well now, even better than before.”
“Wow, Karin... You really look like shit, you know?” Suigetsu uttered, ponting at the girl's hair.
She roared and grabbed his collar, raising her hand as if she was preparing to strike him.
“Shut up, you moron! You weren't the one who had to spend the night whole healing the dying girl!”
“No, that's not it... I meant that you look just as usual.” He barely managed to finish his sentence as her fist met his face, making the boy's head blow into a splash of water, his body falling, or rather flowing down to the floor and reforming a second later. “Wow, you really are mad now...” He mumbled, giggling in amusement at her rage.
“Hinata, how are you feeling now?” Sasuke asked, holding his smirk at the scene that his old teammates gave them.
The girl bowed her head, quietly uttering:
“I'm perfectly fine, Sasuke-san.”
He nodded.
“Good. We'll be departing right now then, Orochimaru.”
The sannin smiled.
“And here I thought we'll be having a nostalgic chat with tea and sweets... Well, fine then. But I advise you two to come back in a few months so I can check the Hyūga's condition.”
“Yeah, alright. See you, guys.” The Uchiha noticed the displeased glance Hinata shot at Orochimaru as he called the girl by her clan's name, yet he decided to ignore it for now, walking towards the doorway instead without looking at his former teammates. “Come, Hinata.”
“Um, Sasuke-san...”
He stopped, turning back and looking at her, confused.
“What is it?”
She looked him in the eyes with unusual resolve and assertiveness.
“I think you forgot what you promised to me before we came here.”
Oh. Right. That...
So she wanted it that badly? The girl was clearly becoming better with each day passing... That was a pleasure to him.
“Right. I almost forgot indeed. Orochimaru.” He turned to the sannin who looked a bit surprised by the sudden exchange of words between Sasuke and his former student's new apprentice.
“Hm?”
Sasuke smirked, looking at Aoda who was still awaiting his summoners' orders.
“I want her to sign the summoner's contract.”
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