Echo. Echo and shuffling of feet could be heard even from miles away. Deep in the cave, an underground hideout, resides people....If that's what you would call them.
Kabuto stopped running after he reached his master. He blinked his eyes, trying to managed with only a torch as a light "I found her. I found the girl." He breathes.
"What about Sasuke?" The unknown man kept his back facing him.
"He's on his way here." Kabuto answered.
The eerie victorious laugh of the man bounced off the wall. He then halt, almost as if he didn't even laugh sincerely "Bring the girl to me as well."
"May I question why you need her, Lord Orochimaru?" He asked carefully "She's....she's sick. She won't be of any help to us. I don't-"
He was startled when the said man faced him, snake like tongue lingering out like it has a life of its own.
"She's not simply sick. That curse have a blessing in disguise."
Kasuno's P.O.V
I woke up this morning feeling all light headed and dehydrated yet I couldn't bring myself to drink anything. It was like my body refuses to allow anything in...
Now, I walk the hallway of the hokage's building, walking even slower than usual. She was right....my vision is starting to have problems. From time to time, things would just get blurry.
I was glued to the wall as close as possible, hands shaking in fear. Fear of the unknown future ahead of me. Or is it really unknown? These past few days, I knew my health have been declining.
I can't eat properly, my body won't move the way I want it to, my vision gets blurry....sometimes I don't know if it's the disease or simply just my tears.
"Kasuno?"
I lifted my head up at the sudden presence, her voice still ringing in my ears like I'm having a hang over.
"Are you here for Lady Tsunade?" By now, she stood close to me, her pig in her hand "I'm actually on my way to the hospital to meet her. Kakashi just returned with Naruto and we are all busy tending Neji and Choji."
I just nodded, out of myself. I didn't understand anything she says but I heard Kakashi's name....
"They got hurt pretty badly while trying to bring Uchiha Sasuke back."
I wish she'd stop talking...Her voice is echoing in my ears. It feels like a thousand knives stabbing my brain....ugh!
"Are you ok?!" She held my arm as I stumble backwards. With her assistance, I managed to regain my balance, blinking my eyes in hope to make my headache disappear.
But it only worsened.
I remember falling on my knees, crying out loud. Crying from how painful it is; crying for help. Both my hands made its way to my head, almost pulling all my hair out. I winced, kick, struggle, shake and did everything to divert the pain away but it didn't. And the last thing I remembered was Shizune yelling for help, not knowing exactly what to do.
I woke up surrounded by white walls and a dextrose in my left arm. Unlike Konoha's Intelligence Division Unit with dark walls, it felt almost scary to be in this room. I would've mistaken it for heaven. It's completely clean and wiped out of things except for my bed, a small table and a window with closed white curtains.
Is this a hospital room?
For a second, I felt safe knowing that anytime I'd feel the gruesome pain in my head again, there'll be doctors to look after me and maybe take away the pain.
But the next seconds made the hair in my body stand. I might be sick but I'm still a shinobi. I'd felt a dark presence around the room after a swift wind somehow managed to open the window and throw away the curtains.
My fingers were about to touch the emergency call light when a voice spoke. It was soft yet deep.
"You wouldn't want to do that." He said.
I look around, alarmed. The lights seems to dim and from the very corner of my room walked out a man, I assumed, from the shadows.
"Dokugiri Jutsu!" In a haste, I performed the hand sign and let out a poison mist with my mouth. Maybe I'm getting weaker or he's just too strong that the jutsu didn't work and he continued to walk towards me with a creepy smile.
"Yamashita Kasuno." My name leaving his mouth was like poison "Let me get straight to the point before you start killing me with all your useless jutsu."
Silence.
"I know how to cure your curse."
Silence.
Rapid heart beat.
I don't believe him. I shouldn't believe him. The doctors said it's not curable!
"Now come my child." His snake like tongue made my body shiver "I will save you from your misery."
"No...No! Don't come any closer!" I screamed "Doton: Doryuheki!" I released an earth wall to protect myself from him but as if he's not human, he went straight right through the wall and it crumbled down.
He clapped as if amuse "You can use more than one element." He reached his hand out "Don't you want to break the curse? I know how to break it. If you would just come with me, you can return to your normal life. An exceptional ANBU. A shinobi of the leaf."
"It's not a curse! It's a disease!" I stated. Curses can be broken, disease are not and my body is slowly rooting away "What-"
Before I could say something, he appeared right in front of me, so close I could feel his breathe against my skin. His eyes were terrifying.
"You come with me and you live longer. You stay here in Konoha and everybody will watch you die."
"W-Who are you...." I managed to let out.
"Orochimaru." He backed away but his long fingers traced my jawline "There are many things the hokage won't tell you. I'm not afraid of anything. That's why I've found the cure to your curse." He smirk.
"I don't believe you!" I spat.
"Why do you think the Uchiha clan are all dead except Sasuke? why do you think he left the village?" His nails dug into my chin and I could actually felt the red liquid making it's way on my neck "It's because the leaf village saw the Uchihas as a threat. So they pushed them all into the side of he village, discriminated them and drove them all to death. Now they can't even help poor Sasuke deal with his anger. They want him gone as well."
"Lies!" I yelled "That has nothing to do with me in the first place! And Konoha treasure Sasuke very much! They're all looking for him!"
He click his tongue and shook his head, indicating that I'm wrong. He brought his fingers to his mouth and lick my blood off his nails "They want Sasuke so they could destroy the kid themselves. It's the same for you. Hidden behind your curse is a very powerful element. That's why the leaf won't cure you. Just like the Uchiha, they fear that once your clan learnt how to break the curse and actually control it, you guys will be too powerful. That's why they're letting you die. They let your grandmother die. Your aunts and uncles die. They let many many people from your clan die and you'll be one of them."
"No! No!" I shook my head furiously, not accepting anything he stated "You're lying!"
"You know it all makes sense." He grabbed my chin and made me look at him forcefully "I'll be back tomorrow night. Think about it Kasuno. Come with me or die here."
I glared at him and he just laugh like a lunatic.
Last resort.
Catch him.
"Yume no-" Before I could even finish my jutsu, he was gone and the only thing that linger in the air was his hideous laugh.
I covered my ears and hid under my blanket.
I didn't know for how long I shook and cried under the comfort of a thin fabric but when I felt the door opening, I panicked and screamed the life out of me.
"Kasuno...Kasuno!!!"
I snap out of it and found the hokage holding both my shoulders, telling me to calm down and breathe.
I bowed my head, gaining my sanity back "I'm sorry...I'm a little out of it." I managed to mumble.
"Did something happen?" She sigh and look at me with concern "You lost a lot of weight. You seems paler than usual and you haven't been going to your therapies." she sat at the edge of my bed "And now you're having a panic attack."
"I'm fine. Nothing happened." I lied.
She sigh once again, frowning "Ok, but...I want to warn you. I don't know what went wrong but Kasuno...your immune system is declining. Your blood is not clotting..."
"What do you mean?" I bit my lips, nervousness filling my system.
"When we get cuts or hurt, our blood clot in order to lessen the bleeding. In your case...even a simple cut could be harmful." She look into a distance as if thinking deeply "Your blood won't clot if you get hurt. It'll be harder to stop the bleeding....I don't even know if we would be able to stop it." She sigh and turn to look at me.
I just nodded at the new information. I don't even have the energy to react. It feels like I'm just here, ready for God to take my life. If I die now...I'll have no complains. I don't even feel like I'm alive. It's like I'm too numb to feel anything....specially after what Orochimaru had told me....
"Don't worry." Tsunade-sama held my hand "We are-"
"It's ok Hokage-sama." I smiled weakly "I'm not that desperate to live anyways...Atleast not anymore."
》》》》《《《《
I wish I was there. Or you were here. Or we were elsewhere together, because I love you and everything is going to be fine. And you will be alright.
I want to tell you that.