One Day at a Time

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of its characters and make no money from this.

Day Twelve: A Step Down the Rabbit Hole

The door creaked loudly as it was slowly pushed open. The sound was almost a relief to the Copy Ninja's ears, breaking the heavy and unnerving silence that reigned between him and the feisty girl he was locked up with. Never bothering to lift his head to see who was coming in and for what reason, he stared at his lap. The sound of heavy footsteps entered the room, orginating from four or five pairs of feet, he assumed. There was a dull noise as something fell to the ground, prompting the ninja to look up to identify the object.

A mangled body lay on the ground, obviously a corpse from its horrid state. It was barely recognizable as the boy who had come to get Sakura the night before. Was he the one that she had seduced? A quick glance to his partner confirmed his theory. Her eyes were wide open and almost shaking with horror. He must have given up something pretty good to end up like this, which made the jonin all the more curious about all the information that the girl retained from him.

"I hope whatever he told you was worth this." Koruko's voice was deeper, more threatening that it had been for the past eight days. Something was definitely up. His anger was solely directed to Sakura.

"He didn't say a word!" She spat back, her eyes quickly losing their fear-stricken expression and moving on to a feral glare.

"Don't try me, girlie. The boy was so dumb he couldn't keep his hands off of you. Surely you were able to loosen his tongue quite easily with yours, hm?" His reply sent the kunoichi in a fury. She pratically jumped to her feet, stomping towards their captor. Kakashi stood up as well, prepared to intervene should she make any mistake.

"That poor boy deserved none of this! You guys forced him into this wretched hole but he was loyal to you nonetheless! How could you!" She roared in Koroku's face, fists clenched at her sides.

Kakashi's gaze turned to the four men behind their leader. They seemed to be throwing each other questionning looks, as if unsure of what to think of the whole situation. Then it hit him. Sakura was a freaking genius.

"You better shut your mouth, cutie."

"Make me." She challenged before proceeding to spit generously in his face.
A sharp noise erupted in the room as Koroku's hand collided with Sakura's cheek, making her stumble to the side from the force of the impact.

"Sakura!" Kakashi's loud cry made all heads turn towards him as he made a dash for the man who had dared to slap his teammate in front of him. He barely made it half-way before two pairs of arms held back his own, preventing him from getting any closer to his new nemesis. The jonin almost laughed out loud at their pitiful attempt to hold back him back. They never saw it coming when he rested hid weight on the shoulder one man held while he thew his legs in the arm, twisting his body until he had them wrapped tightly around the other's neck. There was a sickening crunching noise as the Copy Nin spun his body with all his might, effectively snapping the man's neck and sending the other to the ground.

Before anyone could blink, Kakashi had gripped the remaining enemy's jaw and broken his neck as well. He didn't lose a second to make his way to his real target, only to stop dead in his tracks at what he saw. Sakura was pinned to the wall by the other three men, a kunai at her throat. Koroku's rage was evident on his face, obviously itching to slice her pretty neck open.

"If you kill her you'll never get anything from me." Kakashi barked, keeping a defensive position. Koroku lowered his kunai, hesitation flashing across his face.

"I'm sorry. You're right. We'll just borrow your from for a little while then."

Before the silver-haired jonin could react, the room was empty and the door was closed and locked. He ran to the door, pounding his fists on it with energy he didn't know he ever possessed.

"Bring her back here! I swear I'll kill you!" His voice could have sent everyone cowering and whimpering in fear, if he hadn't been locked up and rendered harmless.

A sharp cry came from the room on the other side. Sakura's voice. She was in pain. A chill ran down his spine as another soon followed, louder and shrill.

"Sakura!" He shouted against the door, renewing his efforts in hitting the door as hard as he could.
Another scream from her side, barely seconds later. What were they doing to her?! The Copy Ninja's blood boiled as he attacked the door with all he had, ignoring the pain in his hands as they collided with the solid metal of the door.

"Sakura!" Desperation and worry was starting to seep in his voice, the fear that they might kill her annihilating any coherent thought in the jonin's racing mind.

Once again, she shouted in pain, accompanied by the sound of splintering wood.

"Wait for me, Sakura!" His fist met the door again and again, even when he felt one of his knuckles break under the pressure.

There was a loud thud on the other side of the door and for a second he hoped they were finally opening it, but his wish was quickly crushed when yet another of Sakura's pained cries was emitted from the other side. It was her body that had just hit the door.

Kakashi's heart beat wildly inside his ribcage as he tried to come up with a solution, with anything to help, his mind reeling to the point that he felt dizzy. The urge to get to her was all that drove him right now. He should have known that he wouldn't get through the thick door, but he refused to believe it. He couldn't. He couldn't let Sakura suffer any longer because he wasn't strong enough.

"Sakuraaa!" He cried out as loud as he could, his voice coming out hoarse as he strained his already sensitive vocal chords.

"K-Kakashi! Shut... Shut the fuck up!" Her own voice sounded strained, broken but more than loud enough to stun her partner. His palms pressed against the cold barrier that seperated them while the rest of his body stilled.

He released a shaky breath, his hands sliding off the smooth surface they had leaned on to fall limp at his sides. He couldn't help her, and she knew it. His back leaned against the closest wall, his body slumping to the ground in defeat.

There were many more cries and screams of agony from the chuunin. One more and he was sure he would be driven over the edge. His shaky hands covered abused ears, blocking any incoming sound as well as he could. His whole body trembled as his mind tortured him, flashing images of his lovely Sakura being hurt in every way possible, dying a horrible death while he could only sit and wait it out.

He regretted ever meeting her in the first place. He wished he had never gotten close to her, or to anyone for that matter. Everybody who he ever let in always met a terrible end, it seemed. Obito had only been the first of many. The thought that he was a walking curse crossed his mind and he was tempted to embrace it. Sakura didn't deserve what was happening to her. Why wasn't he in her place? He'd committed so many atrocious deeds throughout his life, it was a wonder someone hadn't come to get him yet.

Surely, the devil himself awaited him Hell, ready to deliver the punishment he was truly worthy of.


Chapter Thirteen: Click Here