❁𝐈𝐙𝐔𝐌𝐈'𝐒 𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐘- 𝘈 𝘕𝘌𝘞 𝘉𝘓𝘖𝘚𝘚𝘖𝘔 𝘖𝘍 𝘏𝘖𝘗𝘌 ✔︎

Chapter 5, Part 4

Izumi curled up into a ball to try and keep warm.

They did not give her any blankets, and she was beginning to believe she would die from hypothermia.

However, she did not give up.

Izumi devised a plan for herself to escape the prison and save all of the women and children in the cellars.

She listened carefully to her surroundings and concluded that she was kept in the same area as everyone else.

So she was not all that special.

Her chained hands moved up to her face. She breathed into the holes of the shackles, hoping they would not shiver so much.

Then she heard the door attempt to open. Her eyes widened from beneath the blindfold, and she immediately stood up from her bed, trying to figure out what was going on.

Her breathing became heavy and raspy, and panic gradually rose in her body.

She shivered but remained focused on one thing: escaping.

A chuckle came from behind her, and she turned around, only to be kicked to the floor. She gasped from the impact and attempted to get up, but was stopped by strong arms.

"Get off me!" Izumi yelled as she attempted to fight them off.

A taze to her body caused her to immediately stop fighting the guards and fall motionless to the floor. She was picked up again and greeted with a cold metal chair.

She was immediately tied in and her blindfold was removed.

Light blinded her vision, so she closed her eyes and tried to adjust.

Opening her eyes once more, she met Kuro's.

Kuro raised his gaze to meet hers. Her eyes narrowed at him. "Aw, are you not excited to see me?" He asked in a gentle tone.

Kuro circled her like a prey, trying to get everything out of her.

"What do you want?" Izumi asked in a tired tone. Kuro smirked at her question.

He returned to her face and looked her up and down. "It is not what I want, but rather... what Lady Ayame wants," Kuro said as he walked slowly to the wall and leaned against it, smiling.

"Y-You-what are you rambling about! You take, beat, and taze me! Now you want something from me!? Like I told the previous person, I have nothing-" A loud footstep echoed, cutting her off.

Izumi looked in front of her, her eyes widening as she came face to face with the Hoshigan.

"It is good to finally meet you, Izumi Uchiha," Ayame said in a cold tone.

-

Naruto slammed his palms on the table and immediately began assisting in the planning of a strategy.

However, swearing fell from his lips as he realized how difficult it would be. Naruto was not the smartest person when it came to making plans; he was simply unpredictable, which was completely different.

Sakura groaned and grew angry as he stammered. "Oh, move, will you?" She finally exclaimed as she dragged him into a seat.

Itachi stared at Sakura nervously, trying not to get on her bad side. "All right, first we will infiltrate the castle and eliminate all of the ninja who are scouting. Naruto, that will be your responsibility. I am confident that using your shadow clones will speed up the process. Once he does that, we will search the entire castle for Izumi and all of the other victims. When we do, we grab them and flee. Itachi, your job will be to attack anyone who stands in our way, alongside Naruto. As for me, I will make sure to rescue them and look for anyone who is injured."

Naruto and Itachi exchanged amused looks with Sakura.

"Now, if we encounter the enemy at any time, we must prioritize the victims safety at all times! No one will be hurt, and if any casualties other than the victims are discovered, I will deal with both of you personally!" Sakura yelled with furrowed brows. Naruto gulped, while Itachi simply sighed in response.

"Remember, we will save Izumi." Sakura finally concluded, smiling brightly at her master plan.

Itachi stood up from his seat and looked down at the table, thinking deeply. "Allow me to rescue Izumi. It is my fault that she was captured, and I will not allow anyone else to rescue her because I was unable to. Please, Sakura." Itachi pleaded.

Sakura looked at him, amused. When she advised Izumi on how to approach Itachi, she had no idea it would lead to such a close relationship. Or did Itachi realize how valuable and meaningful she was to him?

Sakura's face lit up with a grin. "Right! Very well then, let's do this!" She yelled as they prepared themselves.