The Demon Within

Chapter Four

"Look what we found," one of them scoffed. "A little mouse. Wonder if he's one of the villagers." The young boy struggled against the grip, but soon realized it was hopeless.

"If he was one of the villagers than he wouldn't have a sword on him. Common sense, bro."

"Kaito, Kalas! Nice catch! We were looking for him. Crossing blades with the lieutenant was a bad idea," said another. "Kalik is pretty pissed off." The boy heard footsteps walking up and figured the rest of the men had caught up to them. The boy cursed himself again for having such bad luck.

"He crossed blades with Kalik? What's your name boy?"

The boy didn't answer. The one called Kaito tightened his grip and twisted the boys' hands upwards and watched as the boy's face twisted in pain. "I asked for your name." The boy threw his head backwards and made contact with Kaito's nose. Freed from his grasp, the boy tried to run but was only tackled to the ground by Kaito. The boy was faced up and was staring into Kaito's face and could see a bit of blood coming from his left nostril. Kaito pinned his arms to the ground fiercely and glared at him. The boys eyes widened and he got flustered. "Tell me your damn name!"

"Sasuke," the boy muttered, looking away from Kaito.

"I say we kill him now. There's no need to keep him around," said Takashi as he rested his blade on the boy's neck. "I'll gladly do it since he killed the demon I wanted to kill."

"No, he'll come with us." The boy's eyes widened with shock. He wasn't going to be killed?

"What the hell, Kalik? What do we need a runt like him for?" Takashi growled back.

"Do you know what type of sword that is you're holding, Kalas?"

"No, not particularly," Kalas answered, looking at the blade more seriously now. The boy struggled against Kaito's grip again, but Kaito shoved him harder into the ground, making the boy dizzy from his head hitting the ground.

"Take it out of its sheath," Kalik ordered. Kalas did so, and the blade shown with an eerie blue light. Silence filled the streets and the boys heart plummeted into his stomach.

"It shines," Kalas said with a bored tone.

"It's a magic sword, big deal. You can get those easy if you know the right black markets," Takashi said with an expression of boredom on his face. "Can I just kill him now?"

"It's a Demon Sword, Takashi. I'm curious as to how he got his hands on one since they are mainly used in the south. Knock him out and tie him up. You don't have to be gentle with him either," Kalik said as he headed down the street. The boy glared at him. This Kalik guy was getting on his damn nerves. The other guys started to laugh and the boy was getting embarrassed. Great, I love being mocked by bastards like these, he thought bitterly. A blow to the head made the boy dizzy and he tasted blood in his mouth, then he blacked out.

*****

Sasuke opened his eyes to find himself staring at a mat. He tried to move his arms but found they were tied tightly to his body and his hands tied behind his back. His feet were bound together and he had cloth shoved into his mouth. He felt his arms and legs going numb since the circulation was being cut off. Bastards, he thought. He wiggled around until he succeeded on resting on his side so he could get a better look at the room. The door and the window were located to the front of the room, far away from Sasuke's reach. The room itself was pretty much empty, consisting only of a small table and the mat he was laying on. Sasuke wasn't liking his odds right now. It wasn't his fault he ended up in battle. He was chased there and had to properly defend himself, so surely this clan would understand if they gave him the chance to speak. But Sasuke knew better than that; he was grateful to the samurai who said to bring him here. Suddenly the door opened and an elderly man walked in and looked down at him with a smile. Sasuke watched the man, unsure of how to react.

"I apologize my men were so hard on you. They normally are not this bad. You must have done something to get under their skin." The man sat down near Sasuke and Sasuke just glared at him. The man studied Sasuke for a moment. Like what?! Sasuke thought.

"You are not from around here are you?" Sasuke just narrowed his eyes. What are you, stupid or something? I couldn't answer you even if I wanted too! There's something in my mouth you old man!! The man moved towards Sasuke and he recoiled from his hand. Suddenly the man's eyes widened with disbelief. "Incredible. I have never known someone who could fool my men. I've seen many things in my time, but never thought I'd get to see this. You must have some skill to be able to pull this off." He reached over and removed the gag from Sasuke's mouth. Sasuke coughed and then looked up at the old man, shocked.

"Now don't move while I untie the rest of you. Don't worry, I won't hurt you. The boys who captured you are waiting for me to interrogate you. We'll head over to that room and finish discussions there. I can just imagine their faces when we get there," the man said winking at Sasuke. Uneasy feelings crept up inside Sasuke as the old man untied him and lead him to the room to be interrogated. Sasuke followed the man out the door and down a hallway. Sasuke glanced around and studied the scenery around them. If possible, Sasuke wanted to escape before things got too rough. They made it to a door near the entrance to their headquarters. Sasuke saw a massive gate to the left of him and the two samurai that guarded it. Sasuke turned his attention back to the door when he heard voices inside, some he recognized to be the voices of the samurai who tied him up. The old man knocked on the door and Sasuke sighed. The last thing he wanted was to confront the men who had tied him up.