Mugen Ryukyu
Active member
?So you were caught just before the war ended?? Shikamaru scratched his head in curiosity.
?Bummer, right? After I was captured I was tossed around here and there, sometimes Iwa, sometimes Oto. Actually, I once was placed in the hands of some farmer near Kohona. Could have made a run for it then but--" Kiba suddenly stopped talking, looking very guilty.
Sakura was not going to be cut off. ?But what??
?But we?re here.? In front of the four people was a graying hut, securely fenced by the rocky outcrops just outside of Suna. Squinting her eyes, Sakura frowned. ?Sorry, but I can?t help but think that the fact this hovel is housing hundreds poor souls waiting to be saved is pure bullshit.?
?You?re right. It?s only an entrance.?
They went inside, where Kiba opened a hidden door that led to an underground chamber. Naruto cringed as the mixed smells of urine, blood, and general crowded human came up, but he kept on moving. As they moved further in, they saw rusting cages filled with wide-eyed slaves, all tearful with joy as the four released them. Nearly half of them were POW?s Ashiru had damned to slavery, and among them a good deal were Kohona ninja. Naruto was laughing in relief and half-expected Kiba to be smiling, too. But he was silent, dark clouds still covering his face. Shikamaru noticed as well, and cornered Kiba into a wall.
?Inuzuka, no one here is stupid enough to not tell that you?re hiding something big.?
?I?m not hiding anything, I swear.?
Suddenly, Naruto perked up, sniffing the air like a dog. His pupils dilated and he started to mutter, ?No, no, no.? Then he sprinted towards the heart of the cave. The other three didn?t know what was wrong with him, but decided to follow him anyways. After a while, they were blocked by a gloomy door of steel, but Naruto simply tore through it with a burst of raw chakra.
?Dear God.?
A pitiful bag of bones was kneeling in the center of the dark room, his mangy head bent as if in apology. Both of his arms were chained to the stone floor to the back of him. His limbs were bent in places they were never meant to bend, and his skin was crusted with blackening blood and infections. Angry red burns and gashes of all sizes adorned his naked body, and yellowish-purple bruises mapped whatever skin that was still visible. He might have been mistaken for a badly mutilated corpse if it wasn?t for the slight movement in his skeleton of a torso and the pained wheezes which were supposed to be breaths.
Most importantly, his long, matted hair was a dull black, separating into blood-clotted clumps. It nearly gave everything away, but Naruto couldn?t help but check his face. His hand gently lifted the chin of the half-dead man, and nearly dropped it.
It was Sasuke.
No one could mistake it. Despite of the angular, protruding features of his face, despite of the ear that was cut off to leave a bloody stump, despite of the inflamed swellings clashing with the disgustingly pale skin, it was Uchiha Sasuke.
?Just stop it. Just stop, please.?
For a few, tense moments, not a word was said. Then Naruto came back to his senses and embraced Sasuke without thinking, who let out a weak moan from the pain the pressure was causing him. The blond immediately fell away, then cut off the chains and held the gasping Sasuke in his arms.
?Why the **** didn?t you tell us in the first place, Kiba?!?
?I--I couldn?t let you know! Not after everything he made you go through! For God?s sake, I thought you could get a heart attack from the shock!? Kiba sputtered out senseless excuses, until Sakura managed to shut him up.
?He?s my best friend, dammit! Oh Christ, we can?t leave him like this. Sakura, Shikamaru, go back to Suna and get help as if your mother?s life depended on it. Kiba, search the cave for some clean cloths and water.?
Shikamaru and Kiba flashed out of sight, but Sakura did not move. ?I know that you want to be with him, but you have to be the one to go, Naruto. I?m the medic here; I know what?s best for Sasuke.?
Naruto had a pleading look in his blue eyes, but he carefully set Sasuke down on the floor. Then he disappeared with a flash of jutsu. Sakura, after holding back the flood of emotions and staying strong for what seemed like an infinity, shook with great sobs as she sat down and started to heal the shattered body on her lap.
To Be continued
?Bummer, right? After I was captured I was tossed around here and there, sometimes Iwa, sometimes Oto. Actually, I once was placed in the hands of some farmer near Kohona. Could have made a run for it then but--" Kiba suddenly stopped talking, looking very guilty.
Sakura was not going to be cut off. ?But what??
?But we?re here.? In front of the four people was a graying hut, securely fenced by the rocky outcrops just outside of Suna. Squinting her eyes, Sakura frowned. ?Sorry, but I can?t help but think that the fact this hovel is housing hundreds poor souls waiting to be saved is pure bullshit.?
?You?re right. It?s only an entrance.?
They went inside, where Kiba opened a hidden door that led to an underground chamber. Naruto cringed as the mixed smells of urine, blood, and general crowded human came up, but he kept on moving. As they moved further in, they saw rusting cages filled with wide-eyed slaves, all tearful with joy as the four released them. Nearly half of them were POW?s Ashiru had damned to slavery, and among them a good deal were Kohona ninja. Naruto was laughing in relief and half-expected Kiba to be smiling, too. But he was silent, dark clouds still covering his face. Shikamaru noticed as well, and cornered Kiba into a wall.
?Inuzuka, no one here is stupid enough to not tell that you?re hiding something big.?
?I?m not hiding anything, I swear.?
Suddenly, Naruto perked up, sniffing the air like a dog. His pupils dilated and he started to mutter, ?No, no, no.? Then he sprinted towards the heart of the cave. The other three didn?t know what was wrong with him, but decided to follow him anyways. After a while, they were blocked by a gloomy door of steel, but Naruto simply tore through it with a burst of raw chakra.
?Dear God.?
A pitiful bag of bones was kneeling in the center of the dark room, his mangy head bent as if in apology. Both of his arms were chained to the stone floor to the back of him. His limbs were bent in places they were never meant to bend, and his skin was crusted with blackening blood and infections. Angry red burns and gashes of all sizes adorned his naked body, and yellowish-purple bruises mapped whatever skin that was still visible. He might have been mistaken for a badly mutilated corpse if it wasn?t for the slight movement in his skeleton of a torso and the pained wheezes which were supposed to be breaths.
Most importantly, his long, matted hair was a dull black, separating into blood-clotted clumps. It nearly gave everything away, but Naruto couldn?t help but check his face. His hand gently lifted the chin of the half-dead man, and nearly dropped it.
It was Sasuke.
No one could mistake it. Despite of the angular, protruding features of his face, despite of the ear that was cut off to leave a bloody stump, despite of the inflamed swellings clashing with the disgustingly pale skin, it was Uchiha Sasuke.
?Just stop it. Just stop, please.?
For a few, tense moments, not a word was said. Then Naruto came back to his senses and embraced Sasuke without thinking, who let out a weak moan from the pain the pressure was causing him. The blond immediately fell away, then cut off the chains and held the gasping Sasuke in his arms.
?Why the **** didn?t you tell us in the first place, Kiba?!?
?I--I couldn?t let you know! Not after everything he made you go through! For God?s sake, I thought you could get a heart attack from the shock!? Kiba sputtered out senseless excuses, until Sakura managed to shut him up.
?He?s my best friend, dammit! Oh Christ, we can?t leave him like this. Sakura, Shikamaru, go back to Suna and get help as if your mother?s life depended on it. Kiba, search the cave for some clean cloths and water.?
Shikamaru and Kiba flashed out of sight, but Sakura did not move. ?I know that you want to be with him, but you have to be the one to go, Naruto. I?m the medic here; I know what?s best for Sasuke.?
Naruto had a pleading look in his blue eyes, but he carefully set Sasuke down on the floor. Then he disappeared with a flash of jutsu. Sakura, after holding back the flood of emotions and staying strong for what seemed like an infinity, shook with great sobs as she sat down and started to heal the shattered body on her lap.
To Be continued
