Thread & Needle

here's chapter two. i read chapter one and i realized how crappy it really was. i am extreemly sorry to you guys, i promise i'll put a better effort into my writing from now on. ^^

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BumbleBee: thx for your support! i'll try my best to upload every once in awhile.

a kitsunes light: yes there's alot of secrets, any most of them will be answered soon. hope this chapter is
helpful.

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Chapter Two: to be owned...


Naruto groaned as he stared in the mirror by the room’s door. He tilted his head and reached up to test how sore the ugly spot was. The tips of his fingers grazed across the dark purple skin. A hiss sprung from between his lips as he winced from the sensation. The monstrous thing hurt and looked terrible. Why hadn’t it healed already?

Letting his arm slide down, fingers hit a cold metal object resting around his neck. His gaze followed to land on the collar. ‘Oh yeah… that’s right. A chakra sealer.’

His eyebrows knitted together. The thought of being someone’s property wasn’t that appealing to him, in fact if he could get the chance he’d make a break for it. But diffidently not in his current position. In spite of himself Naruto inspected the soiled clothing. Catching a whiff made him wrinkle his nose in repulse. The Uchiha had been right in ordering him to take a bath. And ordering! What’s up with that? When his jaw gets better he’d tell that no good pansy that people don’t ORDER Naruto Uzumaki around!

Nodding at his reflection in the mirror he turned and grasped a hold of the doorknob. A sudden image of the legendary killer popped into his minds’ eye. Itachi standing coldly with a bloody sword in his hand aiming it at him with those sinister red eyes. A shudder runs down Naruto’s back and he gulps. Maybe letting the Uchiha understand that he didn’t really appreciate being ordered seemed more effective without uh -getting his legs sliced off.

All the scary thoughts of Itachi Uchiha disappeared in an instant when his stomach made a feral announcement that he was hungry. Well at least he knew where he’d head towards first!

Out the door and walking through the hall Naruto sniffed his way to the lounge area. It was more like an open tavern then a lounge, but he wouldn’t comment on that. He peeked around the warm and loud room before entering. The walls made of stone, a large fireplace sat opposite with chattering customers drinking sake and enjoying each others company while sitting at wooden tables littering the spacious area.

Walking against the wall he made his way towards the end of the bar. Like himself he caught the sight of several other slaves in the room. Some where chained underneath the tables or by their masters feet, eyes hollow and broken or some begging to eat their captors’ scraps. These slaves made Naruto’s stomach drop in pure hopelessness. Living weeks in the slave pens he too must have looked as helpless and eager as them, and truthfully without Itachi coming along Naruto had no doubt that he would be one of the ones sitting with a leash on his wrists like those.

He quickened his pace doing his best to keep from catching sight of those creatures once more before he’d loose his appetite altogether. There wasn’t anything he could do for them here, on the outskirts of Ninja Nations anything went. He learned that the hard way.

Passing a few more tables Naruto did see something that lifted his spirits slightly towards humanity. He witnessed more sophisticated slaves sitting in chairs eating whole meals. Of course they were under a higher class of wealth. These slaves sat in small groups a table away from their masters who dinned like royalty. There were even some slaves that stood beside their owners and were given tasks like banking and shop-carting. A few masters cared a great deal for their pets… and then a few cared a little too much. Naruto came eye to eye with one in particular, a young male no older then himself lying comfortably against a burly mans side with an arm slung around his waist. With a bored gaze the boy turned away from his masters’ conversation and matched irises with Naruto’s own, giving a sly smile and winking. Creepy!

Steering clear of THAT table Naruto knew full well what was going on with that relationship and didn’t want to be infected with it. He absolutely refused to be a sex slave! Uh, and what if he had been sold to THAT kind of customer? Those gave him the heebie-jeebies! W-what if Itachi was that way?!!

In a state of shock and horror someone passed by accidentally bumping into his shoulder. ‘OW!’

He turned rubbing the spot with a pouting glare.

“UH! Sorry!” The older boy moved back accessing the damage he inflicted on Naruto, and by fault he saw the ugly bruise and dirty clothes. A look of concern crossed the boys face and he found the thick collar at the base of Naruto’s neck. “Oh… I’m really sorry…”

Naruto moaned in annoyance on the inside. ‘Yeah, yeah, another person to show pity over me. Get outta my way or buy me lunch!’ And he became startled as the boy closed their distance placing a hand lightly on the blonde’s back in a sign of good faith.

“Here do you need help? Are you going this way?”

Feeling somewhat alert Naruto gave the boy a cautious stare. Without much more structures in his path the boy helped him to sit at a stool before the bar. Naruto remained attentive to this person as a bar maid approached.

“Can I get you two anything?”

“Yes indeed! You think you’ve got something with a mean bite to it back there? A good whisky?”

“Hmm? With vodka?”

He shook his head with a light laugh. “Oh no Hun! None of that! I know what you’re tryin’ to do. Get me drunk and molest me with your sweet words!”

The woman laughed and went about searching for the males drink.

Through the exchange Naruto accessed his new -friend-. The boy wore a furred black tunic with tall oiled boots. A katana rested at his side hooked to the latched belt across his midsection. Arms decorated with tattooed bracelets he had long red curly hair pinned up on his head. Mirthful blue eyes scanned the room with an easy smile before coming to lock onto him. Naruto shifted in his seat uncomfortably.

“My name’s Gunther. Please don’t be startled, I just want to help. Does your cheek hurt?”

Naruto nodded.

“Are you hungry?”

He nodded again.

“Can you open your mouth?”

He shook his head from side to side.

“How are you going to eat?”

… ‘NO! I NEED FOOD!!’

“Hey, don’t freak out on me! Yo Hun! Hun!”

Setting a glass of alcohol down in front of Gunther, the waitress beamed. “Yes? Anything more I can help you with love?”

She leaned forward a most suggestive amount of skin showing. Naruto stopped wiggling and shaking his head to instead stare at the bare chest with a reddening face, the older boy seemed unaffected.

“Hm? Sorry bout this Hun, but I do have some other matters to attend to before entertaining you tonight. I’m going to have to take a rein-check. Anyhow, do you think you can bring something out my friend here can eat without opening his mouth to much? A broth, noodles perhaps?”

“I still have a pot left over I’ll go get some.”

Naruto didn’t have another second before a bowl of steaming ramen looking substance sat ready to eat under his face. Even if it wasn’t ramen it smelled delicious!

As he gobbled the meal Gunther ordered another and before Naruto knew it, he’d already gone through three bowls when thoughts of Konoha gripped him. Spooning the broth into the small gap between lips he replayed the odd scenario.

He and his team had been on a small retrieval mission in Rock Country. They encountered resistance the third evening of their arrival to the capital and executed an almost perfect attack and retreat formation. The ‘almost perfect’ part was obvious to the fact that Naruto had been captured by an unknown enemy. Kakashi-sensei’s formation was usually a split division of their team to track and strike the enemy while obtaining the retrieval document before the other side had time to respond. Kakashi and Sasuke played the attackers, He and Sakura slipped in and grabbed the scroll.

The memory was like a rush of flighty scenes. Naruto remembered acquiring the thick scroll in his hand, a scream outside the rawhide tent and an enemy came falling through a burning wall. Glancing toward the burnt body Naruto caught the sight of Sasuke among the flames outside; dodging, parrying and fighting off ninja. It was time to leave. He and the kunoichi dashed from the smoking tent into the shadows. They had plans to meet up with the other two later on.

Within moments the location changed and Naruto was running along a rock face with Sakura, looking down they could see the site where they had just left burning in flames, ninjas scrambling. The sound of a siren reached his ears as they continued towards the vista point where they’d reach the rest of the team. Signal flares shot off into the sky the two turned with the jagged cliff westward. Around the corner Naruto turned and was met with a fist to his gut slamming him against the rock face. He only heard Sakura yell in surprise. In a moment of panic Naruto only had one choice, he tossed the scroll over the edge, Sakura dove after it and the black figures circling around him ignored her. They stayed with him, it shocked him even more. These people weren’t rock ninja’s and they didn’t care about the document. Instead of pursuing the girl, a slack like object covered over his head blackening everything. Then came the pain to his neck.

“Another bowl?”

Naruto jerked his head to the side, his vision swarmed and he was back in the tavern sitting next to Gunther with an empty bowl. He shook his head no and got up. The boy was nice and stuff, but he had learned quickly that -that didn’t have to be the true face of others.

“Leaving already?”

Gunther stood letting a hand rest on the blondes’ arm. A silent whisper flickered by. “Your master should treat you better.”

His jaw was sore again reminding him about the slave pens. He went to shrug off the hand, but there was none. Gunther had vanished.

Heading back to the corridor Naruto kept his space from anyone who passed him. With the right direction in mind from the map hung upon the halls’ wall Naruto approached the bathing room. Closed shower stalls lined one side, a rack of towels and bathing supplies located between each. On the other junction were open showers for the less modest customer and the room went along to vault upward at the ceiling with glass, a large bubbling tub situated below with few people. Only one other shower was in use and Naruto felt more relaxed with the diminished population about him.

A towel and a wash set, Naruto slipped into a stall for privacy. He deposited his ragged clothes standing to take a breath and study the red scratches on his torso. Sometimes without the merchant owner around the guards would get bored. Naruto distinctly felt the wave of alarm from his first encounter to their games, handled roughly and thrown in a small area. The large muscled men stood all around with no escape. Another slave would be then stuffed in the tight ring. Naruto had been baffled until a guard tossed him a knife. The other was given one as well… the look of pure fierce determination faced the young boy and he on some instinct level knew the game all too well.

Running his fingers along the white and reddish cuts he saw again how the other slaves dove in without hesitation to get a slice at him. It had sparked that wild side to his subconscious and Naruto in the height of senses went after each fighter sent against him with rage. To stand a victor in the circle of shouting voices over the body of your victim was intoxicating. In those moments he was not a slave or a ninja, Naruto was a creature acting on survival, trying to stay alive longer… as long as it would take till he was sold.

On autopilot he sat upon the stool washing the caramel coated skin and relishing the trickle of water. Little conversation was heard from the others, some left while he enjoyed the fragrance of body lotions he washed himself with. After weeks of dirt and grim, sickness and insanity he realized just how much he missed a good wash. Being male he hadn’t been treated as well as the females and would listen to their banter as they gushed over different creams. Now free of the bars and male odor he decided maybe he should seek some of these products and pamper the only body he’ll ever have. Glimpsing over at his clothing he curled his lip back and turned away. He refused to crawl back into those clothes which rose the question on how he’ll get new ones.

Peeking out of the stall Naruto wrapped the towel around his waist accessing the others in the room. Three other occupants, they sat in the tub two men talking together and an old man taking a nap. The blonde slipped in and was thankful that they didn’t strike up a couple words from him.

In the heat he reveled in the warmth sinking into his muscles and bones. He wrapped his arms around his legs. Minutes flew by, maybe half an hour. A tall shadow engulfed him. Naruto baulked, the three men were gone, he swirled about. The Uchiha remained stoic.

“Come out now, you’ve been in there long enough.”

Complying would have been easier but as he -swirled- around, the room continued swirling. A splash and the water enclosed him. Much like another game the guards played. And there are worse games that those men played. Malicious men, carnivore fun. Such people with cruel minds, they can teach you a lot about life, about the world, about yourself. Naruto found himself there in the bleakest hours of piss décor walls. In sinful cages, a place of anarchy. The dead bodies, the disease spreading around, the moaning lustful whores and they were all chained together. Either to die or to live, to fight and be sold. Hope could only be won and he won to get this far. To be so close now, all he needed was freedom, a talisman blocked his path. He’ll face this object like he was taught, to become that person he really is. But then again… he was afraid of that dark side.

A hard grasp took hold of his shoulders and the water fell away as he was tugged out of the tub. The cool air hit his exposed flesh. The image of a black figure like death. An escape from the person he is afraid of, himself.

Naruto clung to Itachi’s garments in silence.


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-yes naruto has a dark side to him. due to the torture in the slave pens.