Questionable Loyalty

CHAPTER 4



The next several days passed too slowly for Kakashi’s liking. All he did all day long was eat, sleep and exercise, as much as the small room allowed for it. Still, the more time passed, the more his determination to escape grew. With each passing day his strength returned more and more, the dizziness and weakness going away, he regained his coordination and his sense of balance.



Finally, almost nine days after he was captured, he felt strong enough to try and attempt to flee from his prison.



The window, even if reinforced hadn’t been much of a problem – Kakashi had other jutsus than the Chidori that were useful for cutting through solid objects – and quieter, too. Still, they also worked slower. It took him almost the whole night to cut through the whole panel. Luckily for him, it was the darkest hour of the night when Kakashi finally carefully put the glass plane on his bed and prepared to leave, right before dawn. The pitchblack darkness and the rain – because it was pouring again – provided additional cover.



Carefully, he slid outside and used his chakra to glue his bare feet to the outside wall. Much to his displeasure he realized that it was made from cold, slick metal that had become all the more slippery from the torrential rain. In the dark, going down the spire would be extremely dangerous, but he was prepared to take that risk. With the glass panel gone, even if he returned, in the morning his captors would know that he had been trying to escape and probably move him to a more secure location, possibly drugging him again to keep him docile. There was no turning back.



Taking a deep breath, Kakashi began to move slowly downwards, exercising immense caution, knowing that one slip, one wrong step and he’d fall to his death. Within seconds, he was completely drenched, the water sliding over him in rivulets into the abyss below.



Pein was awoken by the familiar tingling sensation of an outsider going through his surveillance jutsu. Focusing, he realized that it was their guest, and with a sigh the red-head got up from the bed and began to get dressed. He wasn’t in any hurry, knowing that in the dark and wet, and being bare-footed, Kakashi’s progress would be very slow.



Indeed, Kakashi wasn’t doing very well – each step was dangerous and most of the time he had the unpleasant feeling that he was about to fall in an endless black abyss. The rain obscured even the bright neon lights he had seen previously lighting up the skyscrapers.



Finally, after much effort, winded, drenched and shivering, his feet touched horizontal ground. He paused for a moment to take his breath and try to orient himself. He was in a small alley at the back of the building he had been imprisoned in. The asphalt underneath his bare feet felt cold and rough and he winced at the thought of having to run through what appeared to be an industrial city like that. And during the night, no less. His only hope was he wasn’t going to step on a glass or another sharp object – even in the rain, an experienced nin would be able to trace him if he left a blood trail.



After he took in his surroundings, the jounin began to run – as fast as he could under the circumstances, looking for an exit in the maze of streets, drains, canals and walkways that made up Amegakure’s lowest level. The city was eerily quiet, the only sound coming from the constant splashing of the raindrops and the water that was draining away from the streets. Most windows were dark and he neither saw nor sensed any guards or ANBU – quite odd for a Hidden Village and an Akatsuki base no less.



The fact that most buildings were so tall and so slippery made it impossible to take to the roofs in order to move faster, and he felt trapped by the giant labyrinth of glass and steel. With no moon and stars to orient himself, and too cautious to summon Pakkun and allow such a burst of chakra to be felt by any sensitive in the area, soon he realized that he was hopelessly lost. In fact, he began to suspect that he was moving in circles. Fear slowly began to set in and he tried to force himself to calm down – panic never helped anyone, least of all a trained professional like him. Leaning against the corner of yet another narrow street, he began to take deep, calming breaths, in and out, in and out, reciting the Seals in his mind over and over until the wild beating of his heart slowed down. There had to be a way out of here. And he was going to find it.



Being calm and collected did help – soon Kakashi finally found a way from the maze of tall buildings and found himself in a neighbourhood consisting of mainly one and two-storey wooden houses, typical of most villages and towns he had seen in his life. A suburb, then. Which meant that he was somewhere in the outskirts.



Here, despite the rain, he was capable of jumping on a roof, and then on another, moving as fast as he could. Freedom was so close that he could taste it.



That is, until he saw another silhouette, barely illuminated by the street lights below, standing calmly on the curled roof of a large building. The rain stopped abruptly and Kakashi almost slipped in surprise. Then, as calmly as possible, he approached the unknown figure. From up closer he could see that the man was dressed in an unmistakable Akatsuki cloak. The clouds broke up above them and the moon peeked through, illuminating the stranger in its pale, ghostly light. He appeared to be a little shorter than Kakashi, his form hidden in the voluminous garb he was wearing. His red hair was darkened from the water and hanging around his delicately-featured face. The metal of numerous piercings glinted from his nose, ears and lips.



Kakashi hadn’t seen a description matching that appearance in any of the files on Akatsuki that they had. A new recruit, maybe? Someone they yet had no intel on? Someone the organization had sent to catch him so he could prove himself?



Kakashi prepared himself for a fight – even as unarmed as he was, he was far from helpless and defenseless. The man kept looking at him for a little while, then finally spoke, his voice surprisingly deep for such a young face.



“I do not appreciate being roused from my sleep in the middle of the night, Kakashi-san.”



“I am sorry my escape caused you such inconvenience.” Kakashi bit out sarcastically. Why wasn’t the man attacking? Was he buying time? As if sensing his thoughts, the red-head said:



“There are no other people heading this way to reign you in. I decided that it was finally time we talked face to face.”



That gave Kakashi a pause. He decided? So he wasn’t taking orders? Kakashi narrowed his eyes and waited for him to speak again.



“I am glad that you haven’t decided to start fighting yet, Kakashi-san.” The man continued.



“Running headfirst into battle unarmed and against an unknown adversary would be foolish.” Kakashi remarked, but his hands curled in fists.



“Starting a fight in the civilian part of Amegakure and harming innocent citizens ever more so, as it would make me very unhappy with you.”



Just who did this bastard think he was? Kakashi’s fingers itched to move and form seals. He thought about it – indeed, if he began to fight here he could harm innocent women and children. Still, his duty was to the innocents in Konoha, constantly threatened by Akatsuki’s actions. Part of being a shinobi was doing what you had to do, consequences be damned.



Decision made, he attacked. He had no time to draw this out, he had to take this man out and leave this place, go to Konoha and report where Akatsuki’s base was.



The jutsu however, didn’t collide. Despite the amazing speed he was moving at, the red-head simply stepped away and dodged. Suddenly, Kakashi was grabbed by an unseen force and thrown against the opposite wall, crashing on it with a painful thud. The Chidori dissipated. The force held him there, lifting him until his feet left the ground, pressed him so hard that he could barely breathe.



“I am very displeased by your decision, Kakashi-san.” The man said. “With your reputation, I expected something else from you.”



“With my reputation you expected me to cower and beg for my life?” Kakashi wheezed. The pressure grew and his breath was almost cut off. He began to see black spots.



“I expected you’d value the life of innocents more.”



“Do your comrades respect the lives of innocent anywhere?” Kakashi said haltingly.



“My men follow orders. Our cause is just, but unfortunately it takes sacrifices.”



His men? Just as understanding about the identity of this man dawned on Kakashi, he was released. He slumped on the ground, panting and choking and taking large, delicious gulps of air.



“Innocents suffer in all the Hidden Villages, Kakashi-san.” The man said and Kakashi looked up to him. “I try to protect at least those who are in my care.”



Then he turned and began to walk off.



“Come now. Let’s go back to the tower and put some dry clothes on you.”



Still breathing a little irregularly, Kakashi followed.



The walk back to the tower was long and filled with tense silence. The sun slowly showed behind the horizon and wet walls and road glittered in golden tones, the air around them crystal clean, washed by the rain. Kakashi was cold and wet and soon began to shiver, but he refused to show it. It was enough of an insult that he had been manhandled with such ease by this man.



Finally, they reached their destination, and after a long journey up in an elevator, the red-head showed him to another room, very similar to the first one. This one’s window, however, wasn’t bolted shut.



“You can stay here for now. There are dry clothes in the dresser.”



“I still don’t understand why aren’t you…”



“Putting you in a dungeon somewhere deep and dark underneath the city?” there was a small smile playing at the corners of the man’s pierced mouth. “Kisame told you about them, I am sure.”



Kakashi glared.



“I will leave this door unlocked, Kakashi-san. You are free to roam the building from this floor down, and you are free to walk in Amegakure whenever you wish. I won’t stop you. Know this though: if you try to leave I will know. And I will drag you back here. You can leave Ame when I say you can, and not a moment earlier.”



Kakashi felt the immature urge to stomp his foot like a little kid and demand that he was treated either with more respect or as a prisoner, but not as this weird go between.



“You mentioned Akatsuki’s cause before. What would that be? World domination? Isn’t that a little cliché?”



The man did smile then, but there was nothing happy or amused in it. In fact, it was the saddest expression Kakashi had ever seen.



“This is a topic for another conversation, Kakashi-san.” He turned and said over his shoulder “Put on some dry clothes. You’ll catch a cold.”



“Wait.” Kakashi said. “What is your name?”



The red-head paused. Not turning around, he answered:



“You can call me Pein.”