Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Spiral of Darkness ❯ Chapter 2 ( Chapter 2 )

A/N: This chapter is a bit of a filler chapter to give an idea of what's happening before things really get moving in this fic.

Thank you to the people that reviewed. I really appreciated that you liked this or at least found it interesting enough to ask me to keep going.

Warnings: torture, mentions of yaoi, mpreg, AU. If any of these things bother you, I'm not forcing you to read this.

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are property of Masashi Kishimoto and I in no way gain any value beyond the catharsis of writing.

 

Chapter 2: Beginnings

 

The darkness that filled the room was absolute as three tiny figures made their way through the large halls of the house, normally black eyes stark white with one or two comma-like marks spaced around a blood red pupil emitting the only light in the corridor. Hizashi, the one who actually knew what they were looking for, was in the lead, his two brothers trailing behind, all three as silent as ghosts. They were on a mission that, to them, meant more than life or death.

 

They needed to save Mommy.

 

Haran, the most timid of the three, had gone to their father's room, knowing that their mother would be there, and heard their mother crying out in pain. He had come running to his brothers and they all made the decision to save their mother, the only question was how.

 

It was Hizashi that had come up with the plan. Having the sharpest eyesight of the three and the best control over the Byakugan aspects of their kekkai genkai, he had seen the seal that was over their mother's heart several times, a seal that bound him to their father. They all knew that every seal and counter seal imaginable was in their father's library - all of Daddy's partners had said so - so they had all agreed to go find the one closest to the one Hizashi had seen.

 

They needed to save Mommy.

 

Sasuke set his jaw and glanced behind them, watching for their father to appear, as the man was prone to do. He had been talking to Mommy earlier and Mommy had told him to leave things to him. Sasuke knew their mother couldn't fight their father, and he had known that their mother was always acting to direct attention away from them and onto himself, protecting the brothers. Now, it was their turn to protect Mommy from their father.

 

They entered the library as quietly as possible, breaking apart immediately to find the scrolls they would need. Haran went to the section on the forbidden arts, Sasuke to the contracts, and Hizashi to the standard seals. They hunted for over two hours before Hizashi grabbed his brothers, a slender scroll in hand. “Let's go. I found it.”

 

They were going to save Mommy.

 

*+*+*+*

 

Hinata found Naruto and Sakura at the monument, talking with their long dead teammate, sad expressions on their faces. It always pained her to see them like this each time they went to visit Sasuke. The Hyuuga could see the pain in her fiancé's heart every time someone even mentioned Sasuke around him and Sakura was even worse.

 

For the first several months after his death, both ate rarely and hardly slept, going out on mission after mission for over seven months. In the end, their self-destructive lifestyle was halted by their old teacher: Kakashi Hatake.

 

The one-eyed man had quite literally kicked them both out of bed one morning and dragged them to the monument. There, he had proceeded to explain to them just what the monument was for and the stupidity of their current state. Less than a week later, both of them applied and joined the ANBU and developed the habit of visiting the monument almost every day.

 

Luckily, neither had developed any of their former instructor's more annoying habits so far.

 

Naruto and Hinata had been dating for over three years, now, and their wedding was scheduled for June, right on this very spot so that Sasuke could be part of the ceremony. The only thing that could make the ceremony a more fitting conclusion to the closure that they all needed would be if they could find Neji, or his body, and bring him home.

 

She could still remember that day, when she and the remainders of the Konoha Twelve were called into the Hokage's Office and the sight of those ivory eyes staring up at them, bare and accusing.

 

Hinata wanted to cry so badly, but knew that she didn't have time for that. Neji would be returning from his mission soon and she had been summoned to see the Hokage. She could cry once her cousin was back and could protect her from the accusations of their family.

 

Beside her, TenTen and Lee looked worried, both of them sharing glances and wringing their hands in agitation. When asked why they were doing it, they had both said that Neji was never late. This time, he was.

 

As they filed into the Hokage's office, the ten that remained of their twelve, they were greeted by the sight of Hiashi Hyuuga, his face drawn and pale, seated in one the chairs facing the Hokage's desk, his expression one of pure horror and shock. Tsunade stood up, her expression far too hard for any news that she carried to be good.

 

“As of today, Shikamaru, Shino, Ino, Kiba, and TenTen will be going on a search and rescue mission. The rest of you are here so that you can know why,” she stated. She waved one hand at the center of her desk. There, sitting on a pillow was a set of pearl-colored eyes with a long chunk of coffee colored hair spiraled around the orbs. “These were found in Sasuke's vest pocket. I had sent Sasuke and Neji on a mission to track down and eliminate Itachi Uchiha while the Akatsuki was weakened by the deaths of three more of their ranks. When Sasuke's body was found but Neji's was nowhere to be seen, I began looking through Sasuke's injuries and what he was carrying. He was still alive when they ripped his eyes out, and, based on the hemorrhaging around the incisions, Neji was still alive when his were removed as well.”

 

She paused and took a deep breath, letting what she was implying sink in. Faces turned pale and Hinata placed a hand over her mouth, her tears in her eyes.

 

“I believe Itachi Uchiha and the Akatsuki captured Neji Hyuuga and implanted Sasuke's Sharingan in him. Why, I do not know, but I think that the Akatsuki is trying to create a new ability by rejoining the Uchiha and Hyuuga bloodlines. If that is the case, we need to find Neji at once. Do all of you understand?”

 

Every single person in the room nodded. Tsunade sighed and sat back down, pressing her clenched fists into her forehead. “If we can not find Neji in less than a year, we must assume that he is dead. The Hyuuga have already tried using the caged bird seal to track Neji, but it appears to have been destroyed or negated. Do not let your guard down under any circumstances from this point forward until we have captured Itachi and find Neji. All of you are dismissed.”

 

Hinata fled the office, the tears she had been holding back streaming down her face, her heart in pain. First Sasuke, now Neji. It was as if the world were trying to destroy them all. Trying, and succeeding.

 

Shaking her head to banish the memory, Hinata joined her friends, wrapping her arms around Naruto's waist to offer him a small measure of comfort. “Did you have a nice talk with him?”

 

Sakura and Naruto smiled at her and nodded, knowing that the silence that surrounded them in this moment would never return or be the same.

 

*+*+*+*

 

`Two more months,' Neji thought as he stared out the window into the darkened village, `and I will be completely useless.'

 

His slender hands were resting protectively over his bare, slightly rounded stomach, holding the slowly growing child closer to him. Neji leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes, willing the wet, burning sensation to disappear for the time. Taking a deep, steadying breath, he opened his eyes again and viewed the world through Sasuke's stolen eyes, the thin lines that remained from the surgery aching slightly. A chill seeped into his body as he felt Itachi enter the room, appearing behind him like a ghost. Neji's long hair fell around him like a veil as he ducked his head, hiding from the older, stronger man.

 

Itachi ran his fingers through Neji's hair, as if soothing a wild animal, and hummed softly, the tune one that reminded Neji of one his mother had sung to him as a child. It made him think it was one the Uchiha's mother had to have sung to him as a child as well. Slowly, the tension eased from Neji's body and he surrendered to the Uchiha's touch, knowing that it was easier when he gave in over when he fought back. When Itachi grabbed his hair and yanked, he gasped in pain, looking up through the long strands to meet the Uchiha's gaze.

 

“The leader has come up with a plan to make great use of you, my dear Neji,” the Uchiha said calmly, dragging the slightly shorter man to his feet. “A little position that will need a proper puppet for it to work. You will be that puppet and I shall become the puppeteer so long as it is necessary for the illusion to be maintained.”

 

Neji nodded his head, tears leaking out of his eyes to run down his cheeks each time Itachi pulled at his hair, dragging Neji closer to him. The Uchiha smirked and leaned forward, licking the salty water off the younger man's face in delight. “You will do exceptionally well at this, I think.” Itachi pressed his hand to Neji's swollen stomach, smirking as the child shifted beneath his hand. “Very well, indeed.”

 

A/N: So, yeah….time skip next chapter, so don't be surprised by a sudden shift in ages.