The Second Coming

A New Beginning

No doubt a few hours passed before the door was once again opened and Chichia stepped in holding a lantern. Chikako growled at the vile woman but was punished by a harsh smack to the face causing a tooth to escape her metal gag.

"I'm impressed. You regained your memories a year earlier than you should have. It's too bad that you aren't very good at hiding you little nightly adventures. Do you think I wouldn't notice you practicing jutsu while everyone else slept."? The older woman spoke with a triumphant tone.

"Thank goodness that the poison I gave you every day was effective enough even this early." Chikako glared at the old woman. What was she talking about? Poison? She would eat from the same pot at Natsu. Does that mean he was poisoned as well?

"You look confused Girl. You mean to tell me you didn't notice the poison that the dagger was coated with? That's right. Every time your skin was cut, a little more poison began coursing through your body. You never wondered why your arms would go limp from time to time? Or why no matter how hard you worked on your muscles that your arms always seemed so weak?" A disgusting cackle echoed throughout the cell. It wounded like a pig was eating some kind of bird.

"You're too naïve. Now you'll rot here day after day while we harvest your blood and feed it to the White Rose of Kana" With one last glance at the state she put Chikako in filled her with joy as she left the dark cell once again.

From there hours blurred into days. Food was given to her at random times and was always the same thing, so that didn't help Chikako keep track of time. Counting had been the only sure way she could tell and even that was hard.

Outside of girl who brings Chikako her food, she hadn't seen a single person until that moment. Sayako opened the door with a cart full of nasty looking tools. The female waved her assistants away and lit the torches in the empty cell so there was at least a bit of light. Chikako pinched her eyes shut from her newfound sensitivity to light.

"It's nice to see you again Seibara" She sneered with a smirk on her face. With the little mobility she had, Chikako tried to stand up and jump at the traitor. All that did was reopen the wounds on her wrists from her earlier attempts to free herself.

Sayako got down on one knee in front of Chikako and grabbed her chin tightly between her strong fingers.

"So, here's what's going to happen. You are going to scream in pain loudly at every wound I create, and when there's no one watching us anymore I'm going to try and keep you up to date on what's going on outside of this cell. I might be able to get away with unshackling you if I can come up with a solid excuse so you can move. For now, you'll just have to endure what you can" Sayako let her chin go and unlocked her gag.

"That's it. Scream as I spill every precious drop of blood for your helpless body" Sayako yelled loudly.

The female began whipping her body to leave a good number of shallow cuts. Chikako made sure to yell at each lash no doubt making whoever was standing outside of her cell flinch.

"What about Natsu? Is he alright?" Chikako asked lowly. Sayako hit her again with a lustful sounding 'yes'. She sighed. At least he was alright.

"You won't be able to recover from this in just a few days" She laughed. Natsu would be recovered in a few days. Thank Heavens.

"I'm getting tired of this. I feel as if I've been whipping you for a full week. Let's just get your blood" Sayako spoke once more. She put the whip away and Chikako processed what she just said. It's been a week already?

A knife dug deeply into her arm as the blood gathered into a large bowl.

"I'm going to leave a few seeds of grass in here. Try to grow them with the Rose clan's jutsu. Just make sure no one can see it" Sayako gagged the female once again and took the blood with her.

It was reassuring to know that Natsu was safe and, Sayako was still on her side. Now it was all a matter of how to escape.

"I brought your food Seibara" The female who had been bringing her food was Tsubaki. Her features proved her to be one of the Rose clan members with her black hair and pink eyes. The female was timid and polite. Chikako often wondered how she got stuck doing such a horrid job.

Once the gag was off Chikako thanked the girl. Tsubaki began to feed Chikako because she wasn't allowed to unlock her chains.

"So why are you stuck doing a job like this?' Chikako asked. She was never one for talking before, but being isolated in a pitch-black room leaves one yearning for even the smallest of connections.

"My brother is on the weaker side and I'm all he has right now. This is the only job I can take where I stay in the village and can earn enough money to take care of him" Tsubaki openly admitted.

"I have a brother as well. Although he's older than me. When we were together, I often found myself taking care of him whether it be cooking or having his back in battle. His name is Kakashi Hatake. He's from the village hidden in the leaves." Tsubaki nodded. She seemed nervous to be talking to the shackled-up prisoner. Chikako could understand that. Getting close to someone who's chained up in the darkest and most secure cell in the village must be nerve wracking. There's no way to know if she is aware of how Chikako came to be in that cell.

"What's your brother's name?" Chikako asked.

"I shouldn't be talking to you." Tsubaki quickly cleaned up the mess and scurried out of the dark room.

For as long as she could before the next time someone came to either feed her or beat her, Chikako kneeled on the ground and left her body limp as she began to think. It was honestly about anything and everything. Her mind often drifted to the teachings of those who helped her grow.

Jiraiya always said the most important part of being a shinobi is their spirit and the will to never give up.

Despite her dire situation Chikako would never give up. It might seem insignificant to someone else, but she promised herself that she would meet everyone once more before she died. Until then she refused to give up or die. That was what would guide her through this darkness she's enveloped in at the moment.

After all, Itachi taught her that every opponent to matter how strong, has a weakness. Chikako thought long and hard about everyone she met, and who she would have to defeat in order to get out of the village.

In order to move forwards she must remember the past. Every second of it.