Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Poisoned Rationality ❯ Chapter 1 ( Chapter 1 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

basis for this fic is from a novel titled “Poison Study” by Maria Snyder (an interesting read by the way) with a Naruto twist.

I loved the ultimatum involving poisons and such. I wanted to upload the first chapter for this idea I wanted to do and see how it will be received. Don’t worry, I’ll work on Slow Dancing next, I just have to figure out what I want to do with it.

I’m also trying something new with 1st person POV and try to connect with Naruto more as well as get you guys to connect as well. Tell me what you think.

Thank you for all your support and reviews; especially your patience.

Poisoned Rationality

September 7th, 2008

Chapter 1:


[Brilliant idea of yours. Just brilliant.]

‘Oh, it’s you. It must be a new day today. Good morning to you too, Kyuubi.’

[Have you come up with a plan to get us out of this mess?]

‘Yeah. I was thinking that since the chakra band around my neck lost its power last night, that I would simply bust out of this hell-hole, take down a few dozen ninjas, and put a stop to Orochimaru’s operations.’

[Grr! Watch your tone, gaki!]

‘Yeah, yeah. Whatever.’ I shifted stiff muscles in a vain attempt to get comfortable. The floor, which was covered in so much filth the exact contents were unidentifiable, was cold and hard. The straw littering the floor did nothing to cushion my body or give me warmth. The jagged walls were just as grimy and black as the floor. The thick steel door separating me from the rest of the prisoners had a small window at the top with closely spaced bars for the guards to look through. Near the bottom of the door was a small door that was only opened twice a day. My empty food tray and cup would be traded for a not so empty food tray and cup of water. My body ached and the cold did nothing to soothe my joints. There were no windows down here. The dungeons were deep underground and that would have been too merciful. The stale, damp air carried the scent of the prisoners, the dungeons, and my own filth as well.

The band on my neck suppressed my chakra, but I could still move. It was gray now, but it would glow red whenever I try to summon a bit of chakra. Somehow it would absorb it leaving me weaker than before. I could still move, I just couldn’t perform any jutsus. So now I am used to the strange accessory. I’m glad I removed the necklace baachan gave me and hid it from the guards. They would have confiscated it.

I rolled over spying my food tray and bowl of water. I sighed at the effort and wiggled my way across the small distance towards the food tray in front of the door. My hand trembled when I reached out and grabbed the bowl, but I managed not to spill any water. Why was it so cold all the time? I choked on the first sip but managed a few gulps. I eyed the gruel and stale bread that passed for food, but turned away disgusted. My stomach chose that moment to voice its opinion (‘beggars can’t be choosers’), but I ignored it. I could withstand the hunger pains for a few more hours, before I would give in. I decided to appease my body somewhat by finishing the bowl of water. Settling down, my eyes glimpsed a few inspirational phrases on the walls. They were smudged and long forgotten, but I remembered how I used to keep them clean and clear, in the early days. I would re-scrape the letters to be deeper and proud. Messages about hope and courage comforted and encouraged me in the beginning. But now my eyes diverted from its words. I curled into a ball slowly drifting to sleep to the sounds of complaining prisoners. Kyuubi was saying something to me, but I didn’t understand. Well, to be honest, I couldn’t bring myself to care. My days and nights were the same. It was only interrupted from the comings and goings of other prisoners. The ones who left never came back, but new people always came in.

I had been here for nearly a year, according to the kitsune. Some shinobi I turned out to be. And I just became a Jounin-- able to go on solo missions. My first mission as a bona fide Jounin…

A village on the outskirts of Grass territory employed the help of Konoha against some thugs who were forcing taxes and stealing supplies as payment on the people. I assured Tsunade-baachan that I could handle it. She was worried about the Akatsuki. So I did a simple henge changing my gender, lengthening my hair a bit, and hiding my whisker marks. I had perfected this jutsu so well that it took very little chakra to create and sustain it. I wore green contacts and dressed in my standard blue uniform with green flak jacket. I even wore my hitaiate the way Sakura did. Even Kakashi-sensei and Neji-kun were fooled, unable to ‘see’ me with their infamous eyes. I trained non-stop with Kyuubi and the pervy sage so that I could utilize and control my ‘red’ chakra more efficiently, as well as my own.

Well, anyways. Going back to the mission--- I stayed with the villagers for about a week or two. I gained their trust, made a few friends, and gathered information. Following a hunch that led me to a lair a few miles away, I decided to sneak in for more evidence. I made it to the storeroom of food before I was caught…by oto-nins.

Apparently, I had unknowingly infiltrated one of Orochimaru’s bases. I could have taken them down, but I was desperate for information on Sasuke. I hadn’t seen him since we were fifteen (over three years ago) and he had tried to kill me…again, along with Yamato-sensei, Sakura-chan, and Sai.

I decided not to fight back, too much. I wanted them to think I was a weak and idealistic Chuunin that had strayed too far. So they threw a chakra-suppressing band on my neck, removed my jacket, weapons and supplies, and hitaiate, and tossed me in a dungeon, where I am currently. Since that day, when they threw me in here, I hadn’t seen another person or been bothered. My only human ‘contact’ was with the meaty hand that gave and retrieved my food tray twice a day.

I didn’t understand why they never questioned me. I obviously came from Konohagakure, Orochimaru’s chief target. I was never tortured (physically) for answers or anything. They just left me here–forgotten, save for the free room and board with complimentary meals. Ah, yes. Sarcasm. We have become close friends. It was either that or insanity.

Another thing I didn’t understand is why I still remained a girl. I can’t perform any jutsus. Believe me–I’ve checked. But the chakra band didn’t force me to revert back to my original form–my MALE form. Kyuubi theorized that my henge was so subtle, almost like second nature, that it didn’t dispel it. So he maintained the henge by feeding small amounts of his own chakra so as not to trigger the restrictive band. ‘X’ amount of months here have allowed my hair to grow naturally past my shoulders.

One may think me pathetic to still be in this situation after so long. I’m supposed to be a ball of unlimited energy and undying will, with a dream of one day becoming hokage of the greatest village in the ninja world. To my defense, I trained every day for hours in my tiny cell for months. I did pushups, sit-ups, anything possible in my situation if bushy-brows was here. I had uncountable plans and methods of overpowering the guards and escaping. But the whole ‘overpowering the guards’ aspect was a little hard to accomplish, when I had no contact with the guards and no chakra at my disposal. I cursed and insulted the hand that visited me daily to no avail. He never came in to ‘teach’ me a lesson. One time, when that same dirty hand passed in a food tray, I grabbed it demanding he unlock the door. I threatened to break his hand but then I instantly heard the unmistakable sound of a person being impaled by a weapon. Shock and something else, something familiar, coursed through my veins when the hand I had yet to release, went slack. He was dead. No more meaty hand to deliver my meals. Even then, nothing was said or done. I was never threatened or punished.

A new hand, old and wrinkly brought my meals and retrieved my tray. It trembled the first few times and I realized the hand, as well as the one before it, belonged to a prisoner.

So here I lay on dirty straw that itched my skin and with a hunger to see the outside world. I slept a lot. My dreams were filled with friends I missed dearly. It was a welcome reprieve from my monotonous days. So I slept, wondering for the umpteenth time when I would be killed or if I would spend the rest of my days here…alone.


###############


A loud sound woke me from my dreams. A small amount of light from a torch floated before my blurry eyes. I squeezed my eyes shut from the intensity of the flame.

[Gaki! Wake up! This is your chance. Our chance.]

I opened my eyes when a guard attached a chain to my neckband. My hands and feet were shackled into a simple and connective work of chains. I was roughly dragged to my feet.

“Move it, bitch, or we’ll get the whip!” I stumbled but managed to move forward, supporting the weight of the chains and my own body. There were three guards. Two were in front of me and one was behind. All were large, ugly, and stupid looking (almost troll-like).

We turned a corner and passed large cells with multiple people in them. I shuffled along to various catcalls, insults, and farewells from neighbors I had never seen before. They were just as dirty as I was. Some weren’t moving, some were injured, and some were without hope, carrying a dead look in their eyes. One shape caught my eye. It was clearly a child. One who had lost all hope in life. Even fear and uncertainty were gone from those blank brown eyes. I wondered if my own countenance mirrored his.

At that moment, I felt relief and joy, at the apparent freedom present before me. I immediately felt shame and guilt sting me to the core. How pathetic I have become. It sickens me.

[Are you done, yet? Or would you like to kick your own ass now?]

‘Hmph. It would probably be safer than walking into their game.’

[Wait for me to give the signal. You don’t need to use any chakra; just brute force and skill.]

At my silence, which seemed to carry more weight than clear refusal, the kitsune berated me further.

[Don’t you dare say anything about the Uchiha.] he growled.

I remained silent. I quietly followed the guards up a flight of stairs, which I promptly tripped on. The guards practically dragged me up the steps, scraping the exposed parts of my body. Once on the top step, the guard behind me grabbed my shaggy hair, hissing in my ear, “Fuckin bitch. One more trick like that and we will not hesitate to break your legs at the kneecaps.”

The other two guards leered at me and I could tell that they would enjoy my screams as they broke me. I shivered in fear and refrained from scratching my head when the guard released his hold on my hair. The hallways were empty but for the spaced out torches lighting our pathway. We made many turns, one too many for me to remember or even care to. The maze of hallways appeared to be deserted, but I knew better. Sound nins and snakes were keen to sounds and unknown vibrations. An intruder didn’t stay secret for long.

I did notice the smell, or the lack thereof. The smell of excrement and other bodily fluids had been my companion for many months. We didn’t come across any windows, but we did pass several large doors. We walked for a few minutes until the guards before me stopped abruptly, causing me to walk into one of them. The other guard knocked on the door while the one I bumped into raised his arm to backhand me. I flinched in anticipation of the blow.

“Enter.”

I paused, eyes widening. The voice, though it released only one word, was familiar. The guard who knocked, opened the door while the one behind me, pushed me through the door. I tripped under the weight of the chains.

“Hn.” Kami-sama. I didn’t think there was one word (if you could count it as a word) that I longed to hear more than any other. My gaze shifted from the stone floor, to the oversized wooden desk, and to the teme sitting unconcernedly at the desk. His attention was not on me, but at the parchment he was reading and writing on. His hair gently swayed in the light breeze behind him.

I shuddered, causing the chains binding me to clink almost musically. One of the guards yanked me from the ground to face my friend/rival. From the whispered conversations between inmates, I gathered that a prisoner brought before an official was questioned and their fate determined. Some were sentenced to death while most faced a more terrifying fate–that of one of Kabuto’s science experiments.

Sasuke wore the same outfit I last saw him in; the somewhat bulky layers of clothes that revealed a lean torso. One would think him weak by his slight frame, but that would be a fatal mistake. I knew he was powerful. He definitely seemed more confident and carried an air of importance. Even the soldiers yielded to his position, which I have yet to determine.

When his onyx eyes, dark as midnight glanced at me, they widened slightly in surprise. His face remained emotionless, nonetheless. I glanced down, suddenly conscious of my appearance. You could barely tell that the original color of my uniform was navy blue. There were several rips and tears on it. Sweat and filth soaked through my clothes. My hair hung limp and greasy. Every inch of my body was dirt streaked. I wore no shoes and the soles of my feet were blistered and grimy.

“A woman? The next prisoner to be executed is a woman?” His voice was like steel, hard and unforgivable. My body trembled on hearing the word ‘executed’ spoken aloud. The relief I felt upon leaving my cell dissipated. Sasuke couldn’t speak of k-killing me like it was nothing–simply an everyday occurrence.

[He doesn’t know it's you, fool.]

I would have collapsed to the ground in hopelessness but I certainly didn’t want to appear weak in front of my rival, at least more than I already appeared to be.

Sasuke massaged his temples for a bit. “I should have taken the time to re-read your file.” He seemed to be talking to himself. Without a glance, he waved impatiently at the guards. “Dismissed.”

As soon as the door shut behind me, he motioned for me to sit at the chair in front of his desk. My shackles clanged loudly until I settled myself on the chair. Sasuke regarded a folder on his desk, scanning its pages.

“Kisa, today may be your lucky day.”

I suppressed the automatic reaction to oppose whatever came out of his mouth. A habit, I suppose, although a dozen cynical remarks flitted in my mind. I bowed my head directing my gaze to my lap.

It was silent for a few minutes before he decided to speak up. “Well-behaved and respectful. A potential candidate for Orochimaru.”

My eyes widened and I began to shake. My heart pounded and blood seemed to roar in my ears. So, that’s it then. I’ll be forced into some crazy experiment until I die or I’m killed.

[Your dropped henge would expose you first.]

“Guilty of attempting to steal property of Orochimaru.” Even his tone was emotionless as he reviewed my file; almost a monotone. He sighed, alerting me to his well-guarded exhaustion. “I suppose you are going to protest the conviction. Say those were stolen goods and belonged rightfully to the people of the village you are aiding.” He leaned back in his chair, settling into a pose of weary patience.

“No, sir,” I whispered. I have no idea how long it’s been since I last used my vocal cords. My mouth was dry and my throat felt raw. “As you said, guilty as charged.”

Sasuke straightened in his chair, shooting me a hard, calculating look. My answer surprised him as well as myself. I could literally feel my old determination and stubbornness return to my body. I know I must have challenged him, as I lifted my chin minutely and gave him a pointed look with my green eyes. But he laughed. Nothing major, just a couple of sounds that almost made me smile in return.

“Kisa, I have an offer for you. You can either be executed, or you can be Orochimaru’s new food taster. His last taster met an unfortunate end recently, and we need to refill the position.”

I looked at him dumbfounded. He must be joking, though the teme was never one to crack jokes. He must have developed some sick sense of humor hanging around Orochimaru and his freaky followers.

I played along. Smirking at him I replied, “Only a fool would refuse the job.” I attempted to cross my arms, but the shackles restricted my movements.

“It is a lifetime position. You may die during the course of your training. After all, how can you identify poisons in Orochimaru’s food if you do not know what they taste like.”

I shrugged, unaffected by his words. Though I was surprised at the amount of words leaving the teme’s mouth. He was usually a man of few words.

“You will sleep in a room next to my own. No days off. No husband or children.” He straightened the papers in my file, closing the folder.

“Now, you may refuse. You would not be the first. At least they knew when they were going to die, rather than guessing if its going to come with the next bite.” He smirked at me. I gulped in realization at the situation. He was serious. But I still thought life was better than the alternative. Questions raced through my mind; I’m a leaf nin, why trust me? What would stop me from escaping or killing Orochimaru?

“Who tastes Orochimaru’s food now?” I asked this instead of my other questions. I didn’t want him to revoke this option.

“That’s Orochimaru-sama to you. And I do. So, you can understand my anxiousness to find a replacement. Besides, under the Sound village laws, only a prisoner awaiting execution may be offered the position.”
Sasuke tastes the food for poisons. But I thought he was the heavily guarded and protected vessel, precious to Orochimaru. Why would he risk it?

Unable to sit still any longer, I paced the office, chains and all, and contemplated my options. I took in the large space. It was filled with shelves and tables of books and scrolls, as well as bottles of various liquids. Some held portions of specimens or plant life. This was clearly a study. There were no personal touches or art except for the oversized shuriken hanging on the wall to my left.
I sighed and looked at Sasuke with resolve. I have to become the food taster. I might be able to save Sasuke or at least myself.

“What shall I tell the executioner?” came the smooth question.

“I am not a fool.”


#################

[You fool!]

I ignored the kitsune. He’s gonna have to deal with it. It’s not like he can do anything about it.

After informing the guard, who also removed the chains and shackles, Sasuke returned to his desk. He looked at me for a moment before opening one of the desk drawers and retrieving a bottle and two cups.

“I thought you could use a drink, while we wait.”

He filled the two cups with an amber liquid. Raising his own cup, he made a toast.

“To Kisa, our newest food taster. May you last longer than your predecessor.”

My cup stopped short of my lips and I regarded him with narrowed eyes.

“Relax,” he smiled a small, comforting smile, “It’s just a toast.”

I drank deeply. For a moment, I thought my stomach would reject the new contents. It’s been a while since I drank something other than water.

“What does it taste like?” asked Sasuke conversationally.

“Umm.” I frowned in thought. “Peaches sweetened with honey.”

“Hn.” It was more of an affirmative ‘hn’, so my answer must have sufficed. He nodded encouragingly. “Take another sip. This time roll the liquid around your tongue.”

I complied and was surprised by the faint citrus flavor. “Orange?”

He nodded. “Now gargle it.”

“Gargle?” I asked. He nodded again. Feeling foolish, I tipped my head back a bit and gargled the rest of my drink, and almost spit it out. “Rotten oranges!”

He smirked. “Correct.” He opened my folder and picked up a pen to jot something down. “You just had your first lesson in food tasting. Your drink was laced with a poison called Butterfly’s Dust. The only way to detect Butterfly’s Dust in a liquid is to gargle it. That rotten orange flavor you tasted was the poison.”

“Huh…”


######### TBC ###########


So, was it okay? I was intrigued (haha–I’m such a dork). Apparently I have a thing for gender-swap fics (who knew?). Please drop a review, ask questions, or critique the chapter. (^-^)// I’m interested in your reactions so I know how to write next time or something to that effect. Until next time!