Restoration: Book 1/3

Chapter 16

I was avoided like the plague for the next few weeks. At first, Sakura and Matsuri tried to talk to me a few times, but when I wouldn't confess what'd happened while I was away, they got upset and left me again.

Tenten was the only one who didn't follow the trend. Her curious inquiries continued as though nothing had happened. I realized she was only asking questions about my upbringing and family. One night, I finally snapped and asked her why she was gathering information on me. The pretty brunette tried to devise an excuse but was a poor liar and retreated to her bunk next to Neji and Lee defeatedly. That was when her questions came to an end.

Somehow, I managed to steel myself both inside training and out.

My and Naruto's M.A.T. sessions were tense and confusing for us both. There's no hiding your emotions from someone inside your head. He was worried, but he was also hurt by my inability to trust him and angry that I was doing all I could to ice out my thoughts so he wouldn't see anything I didn't want him to.

I didn't want to admit that it hurt when he looked at me like he did after Madara threw me back down here. Of all the people participating in The Program, he was the one person that truly understood me. At least, that was what I thought. Maybe it was only because we were partnered for M.A.T, but it was true nonetheless.

Keeping yourself completely distracted in your thoughts for hours is incredibly strenuous. I did everything from reciting the elements of the periodic table to attempting to replay movies in my head.

On the first day of this, Naruto tried to question me since there wasn't anywhere for me to run, but I did the mental equivalent of putting headphones on and ignored him to the best of my ability. That really made him angry. By the time that specific session ended, the worry he initially felt for me was barely a footnote. He'd even stormed out of the room without a glance in my direction.

Pushing away the first people I've ever considered friends made it hard to keep my head up. Tears were always just a moment away, and I often excused myself to hide in one of the bathroom stalls so no one would see me struggling to keep my façade up.

Not only did Madara ruin my home life, but he also made sure to stomp out any rays of hope I'd have down here. There was also the story he told me about my mother. I desperately didn't want to believe it to be accurate, but something in my gut told me it was. If that was the case, I have an older brother out there somewhere that Madara insinuated he hadn't been able to locate.

What type of person could he be?

Will he look like me, or would he favor his awful father?

I yearned to meet him, surprising myself, and had to nip those thoughts in the bud. There's a chance he doesn't even exist, so there's no point in putting energy into worrying about him. Instead, I worried about the sibling I knew was out there.

Hanabi was clearly going through something by how she acted, but I knew better than to question Madara. I had to rush to the bathroom in the middle of the night when I first got back when I realized he might've gone for my little sister how he'd tried to approach me.

What if he forced himself on Hanabi?

My whole body heaved and shook in response to the panic the thought made me feel.

I was so worried about her that it became hard to eat or sleep, but I still gave it my all during physical training. There was still a tiny sliver of hope in me that if I did well like I was told to, Madara would let me go at the end of this twelve-week program, and I could convince Hanabi to run away with me.

Before I knew it, The Program was halfway through. We'd been locked in the basement below the basement for six whole weeks.

Looking around the dark room at all the sleeping participants, I couldn't help but feel at least a little impressed. Every person was developing their talents at an incredible pace, even me.