064 - Motion

NADESHIKO

The room in which Hanabi found herself confined was a stark departure from the humble opulence of the Hyuga compound. Its cold, stone walls were devoid of any adornment, and the only source of light filtered through narrow, barred windows high above, casting feeble rays that barely illuminated the shadows. The air hung heavy with the musty scent of dampness as if the very essence of the room had been swallowed by the passage of time.

A thin, worn straw mat covered the unforgiving floor, offering a meagre respite from the chill that seemed to permeate the chamber. The only piece of furniture in the room was a rough-hewn wooden stool placed in a corner with a simple bowl of rice and a cup of water.

The Hyuga heiress, her once-modest-but-well-made training garments had been replaced by a grey, threadbare kimono that clung to her like a shroud. She sat cross-legged on the mat with a stoic grace that belied the turmoil within her as she stared blankly ahead. Her ebony hair cascaded in disarray, unkempt—hands and feet bound by pink crystal blocks.

The sound of distant footsteps echoed occasionally through the corridor outside, a constant reminder of her isolation. A solitary, rusted door littered with numerous seals stood as both a barrier and a gateway to the unknown. The Hyuga knew not whether it led to her captors or a fleeting chance of escape.

The footsteps came again. Closer this time. A creaking noise echoed as a lock was unlatched, then, slowly, the rust-crusted door swung open and an unfamiliar woman walked in.

The stranger said nothing as she approached.

Hanabi croaked through parched lips. "Who are you?

Silence. The stranger's palm came to rest on her shoulder and suddenly there was a change of scenery.

Another cell. This one was a relatively small chamber with visibly dense concrete walls. The floor and ceilings were layered with metal and also bore a worrying amount of seals. The room was sparsely furnished, containing only the essentials. Light bulbs were recessed into the ceiling with no visible switch in sight. A simple cot with thin bedding was positioned against one wall, and a basic sanitation unit was discreetly integrated into another.

"Is this the child?" one of the older women asked. The one who had brought Hanabi simply nodded before promptly disappearing again much to the Hyuga's confusion. Hanabi felt cool air settle on her hands for what must have been the first time in days and looked down to see her crystal restraints were gone as well.

Flexing her fingers experimentally, She looked up, silently contemplating if escape was even possible.

"Don't stress your head, little one," the older woman said as she turned to leave with the two at her back. "Someone spent a lot of money to build this place specifically for you. You aren't leaving unless we let you out."

"Wait!"

"...What?"

"Why?"

"...You tell me, kid. I am not sure myself. Hot food and water will be brought to you in a few minutes. Behave yourself when the help arrives. You will be treated well for as long as you don't make yourself a nuisance."

The door swung close soundlessly behind the trio before sealing shut with a heavy clunk.

***

Their projections all gathered in a circular chamber. Silence prevailed. No one spoke as each watched the other warily. Pain sat at the head of the table, his Rinnegan surveying the room with a calculating gaze. The atmosphere crackled with suppressed tension.

Deidara was the first to break.

"What the hell is going on?" he asked, his voice edged with frustration and his projection's hands unconsciously forming a bird with clay. "That Sasuke bastard blew through a hidden village like it was nothing. I thought he was crippled? And Itachi... Itachi betrayed us!"

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

The zealot with the scythe, Hidan, leaned back in his chair with a wicked grin. "Well, well, well, and here I was hoping things would get interesting. I always thought the Uchihas were a bunch of backstabbing maniacs, but to think—"

"Enough."

Pain's gaze panned across the assembled Shinobi as his steely voice reverbed through the cavern. "I did not gather you all here to complain about what has happened. Our focus should be on how to deal with the fallout. Sasuke's attack has drawn significant attention, and the loss of a combatant of Itachi's calibre from our ranks complicates matters further."

The room fell into a contemplative silence as each member considered the implications of the recent events. Pain leaned forward, his voice resonating with authority.

"We must prioritize the completion of the Akatsuki's ultimate goal. The tailed beasts are essential to our plans; two of which we are still unsure of their status. Itachi's actions have complicated matters, but he is dead now and we will adapt. It is his brother that worries me; he was reported to have the nine-tails in his possession during the attack and our informants in Suna claim the Shukaku was missing following a battle with him. I don't know why or if my assumption is true or even possible, but he seems to have taken a liking to collecting tailed beasts."

"And given his affiliation with Orochimaru and possible presumption that we are allies of his brother, whom he bears a blood grudge with, I suspect we are being targeted."

Kakuzu's projection scoffed at that.

"You deem him unwilling or unable to?" Pain asked, one brow rising. "The same individual who dared stage an attack on a hidden village and succeeded?"

No response came.

"We will be putting all other non-essential activities on hold until further notice," Pain continued as he prepared to dispel the projection jutsu. "Until then, we are to find Uchiha Sasuke, kill him and retrieve the beasts in his possession.

***

The room was vast, filled with an array of scientific equipment, arcane symbols etched into the walls, and mysterious substances bubbling in glass containers lining tables by the walls. The low hum of machinery and the occasional drip of liquid echoed through the sterile chamber.

At the centre of the room lay a pristine surgical table bathed in an eerie, greenish light. Strapped to the table was the object of Orochimaru's attention, his Sharingan eyes staring at the ceiling with cold apathy. The Sannin manoeuvred around the table holding the Uchiha in place with cold steel clamps, his eye alight with eagerness. He moved with deliberate precision and ritualistic efficiency, under the watchful eyes of two blood clones armed to the teeth.

Even after everything The Uchiha still didn't trust him. Had Orochimaru cared about that at all, his feelings truly might have been hurt.

A large tank filled with a thick, viscous liquid dominated one corner of the room. Inside floated a pristine amalgamation of organic matter, shaped into an arm by the infusion of Hashirama Senju's legendary cells. Twisting veins and sinewy muscles grown from the First Hokage's cells pulsated with an unnatural vitality over a skeletal frame of specially treated Kaguya bone notorious for its unnatural hardness and the ability of osteoblasts and osteoclasts to be consciously altered.

"Prepare yourself, Sasuke-kun," the sannin purred as he placed the serrated teeth of a bone saw on the stump that remained of Sasuke's right arm.

Being the spoilsport he was, the Uchiha simply sighed in response.

"Just get on with it, would you? We don't have all day."