Chapter 12

Masumi arrived just a few moments after Orochimaru disappeared with Karin's body. No one dared move to continue training like we'd been instructed, so she barked out at us when she saw us standing in a group with horrified expressions, "Get to work!"

Sakura was sobbing into Ino's chest, and when everyone slowly began heading into their usual groups to exercise, the two girls didn't part ways. The pregnant woman stalked over and roughly pulled Sakura away from her friend by her arm.

That was it: the last straw.

Before I realized what I was doing, I grabbed Masumi's wrist tightly and yanked it away from the trembling younger woman. My voice was like ice, accurately conveying the absolute rage I was trying to hold back, "Don't touch her."

My stepmother's eyes widened before she snapped out of it and tugged away from me with a glare, "I'll have you punished."

She meant the threat whole-heartedly and was probably excited at the idea, but I didn't back down and remained between her and the two girls, "He just killed someone, Masumi. Things have gone too far."

People whispered nearby as they watched us, but I couldn't care less. The older woman seemed to hesitate momentarily before she steeled her gaze and pressed a button on the side of her cell phone. Her lips were in a stubborn line, and she looked down her nose at me like she'd won the argument.

Two minutes couldn't pass before the door to the training area busted open. Madara and Kabuto stormed in, the former looking more enraged than I'd seen him. Every fiber in my being wanted to run and hide as he approached with a terrifying glare in his dark eyes, but I had to stay strong for Sakura.

"What's the meaning of this?"

I opened my mouth to reply but felt the familiar sting of a swift slap across the face. The murmurs around the room picked up, yet I held my ground, "Karin was just killed in front of us all. She's not coming back, Madara!"

He didn't respond to me but wordlessly motioned for Kabuto to come forward.

The silver-haired cook descended upon me, wrestling me to the ground to get my hands pinned behind my back before pulling me to my feet and guiding me roughly toward the exit. In my blind rage, I heard Madara threaten the remainder of Group B that outbursts like mine wouldn't be tolerated.

I was removed from the training area before I could hear the rest. I thought Kabuto was going to take me upstairs to be punished. Still, to my utter disbelief, he pressed a few buttons on what I thought was the thermostat, and part of the concrete wall between the two training area's doors turned to reveal a hidden passageway.

Panic rose in my throat, and I struggled to free myself from his grasp, but it was futile. I was shoved forward and down a winding hall with door after door on either side. He selected one room, seemingly at random, and threw me inside. I caught myself before my head could smack against the ground like Karin's had, but when I turned, the door slammed shut, and I had nowhere to go.

The room looked like the M.A.T. rooms but only had one chair rather than two. This chair also had straps ready at the wrist and ankle area, which shot a chill down my spine. The helmet sat on a counter built into the wall. I waited for what felt like forever for someone to arrive to enact whatever punishment they had in the works for me.

My entire body was shaking with fear by the time Madara stepped through the door. My adrenaline had finally worn off, so I wasn't feeling nearly as brave as I had. I cringed away from his appearance as he shut the door and locked his unwavering gaze on me.

"I warned you."

I tried to fight him off as he forced me into the chair, but he was so much larger and stronger than me that I didn't stand a chance. He handled me roughly as he strapped my limps with the leather clamps.

After grabbing the helmet, hooking it up, and placing it on me, he stood with his arms crossed and an unhappy frown, "If it was someone else, I would've simply gotten rid of them, but for Masumi's sake, I won't do that."

My brows furrowed as I looked at him through the tinted glass of the helmet, "S-She doesn't care about me."

Typically, he'd offer me a smirk, but he was too angry with me, so he shook his head, "No, she doesn't, but Hanabi does, and if you died by our hands and her daughter found out, she'd be inconsolable."

I felt a bit of hope rise in my chest. So when he threatened my sister and me, he was just blowing smoke?

My relief was short-lived.

"That being said, I won't tolerate blatant disobedience like this again. I trust you understand how little I care for your well-being." I couldn't find a good response before he pulled out his tablet and started wordlessly clicking on the screen. The familiar sting on the back of my neck came, and my eyes widened in terror as my vision went black.

What appeared in my mind then was nothing like what I'd experienced when training with Naruto. This was like someone was forcing me to see and feel things formulated specifically for mental torture.

For hours, dozens of people beat, abused, and even repeatedly killed me. Other participants hurt me, my family broke me, and even random people from my high school took a turn. Every hit, every slice of a knife, and every gunshot felt so incredibly real that when I was finally released from the awful experience, I could only stare blankly.

If I spoke or reacted in any way, I knew I'd lose my composure and quite literally fall apart. My body tingled with remnants of pain, but there wasn't any proof of the torture except my mental state.

Madara wordlessly unhooked me from the chair, pretty much dragged me back out of the secret tunnel, and then tossed me haphazardly onto my bunk. Everyone stared as he walked away, and no one dared make a sound until the sound of the door shutting upstairs came.

To my relief, I was left alone and curled into a ball, completely under the blankets, so I wouldn't have to see anyone's face. It'd only remind me of what I'd just experienced, and the memory was still too fresh to handle. Of course, I knew the other participants hadn't actually done those terrible things, but it had been so real. So accurate.

I'd missed dinner, which I was okay with because there was no chance I would've kept anything down, so after a while, the lights went out, and everyone silently went to sleep. The only sound in the room came from Sakura and Ino. The pink-haired girl was inconsolable as she mourned her sister, and Ino did everything she could to soothe her pain.

I didn't dare close my eyes to go to sleep. The memory of being repeatedly tortured would only plague my dreams; I knew it. Instead, I zoned out with wide eyes under the blanket until morning. By morning, I'd calmed enough to move without falling apart, so I rose and headed to the showers before anyone else was awake.

I chose the shower against the wall, hoping the cool concrete against my skin would help calm me. I rested my aching head against the cold wall, my brow furrowed as I tried to keep my thoughts clear.

It was only around four in the morning when I got up, but I must've become dazed under the steaming water because I was shaken from my stupor by the sounds of others steadily joining me in the shower room. Had I fallen asleep standing up? I glanced down to see the skin on my fingers was prickled.

My heart rose into my throat as I turned off the water and gingerly dried my skin before getting dressed and stepping out from behind the curtain. The light chatter of those awaiting their turn for a shower was silenced instantly, and I kept my gaze on the ground so I wouldn't have to look anyone in the eye.

Mentally, I felt much calmer than I had last night, but I still didn't trust myself to not react if someone tried to interact with me. So, I silently brushed my teeth and hair at the sink before returning my hygiene items to their bins and sitting in the dining area.

A plate of food and a glass of water appeared before me, most likely by Kabuto, and my body stiffened. It had been my understanding that he was simply a health expert, a cook, but when he wrestled me to the ground yesterday, he was clearly dripping with experience.

I sensed someone sitting down across from me and tried to calm my breathing. It had to be Sakura, and she was probably the one person who'd sit down without trying to talk to me. Gingerly, I raised my eyes to see that she was staring down at her plate with puffy red eyes. Her poor face was bruised black and purple, but luckily the swelling had gone down. She looked just as traumatized as I felt.

Others started to sit around us, the usual people from Group B, and I averted my gaze back down, to my plate. I couldn't even think about touching my fork, or a wave of nausea would roll up my throat. A soft voice broke through the loud chatter in the room a few minutes later; once everyone was eating breakfast, "Hinata…."

My eyes shot up to see Sakura's bright green ones welled up with tears as she looked at me. Tears welled within my own, but I couldn't bring myself to blink them away. The table went silent as we stared at each other, both of us trying to figure out what to say or do until my tears finally overflowed and rolled down my cheeks.

It was as though something snapped in me, and I shot to my feet, pulling my gaze from hers before rushing to the bathroom so I could have a moment alone. The tears started, and they didn't show signs of stopping. I closed the lid to a toilet seat and climbed atop it, pulling my legs up to my chest as I sobbed into my knees.

She looked so broken and lost, yet I was crying while she was out there putting on a brave face. Self-loathing washed over me, and it only made me cry harder.

After a few minutes, I heard people start to put their trays up and line up at their assigned training door and knew I had to get it together soon, or I'd be in trouble again. Somehow I managed to stop the tears and came out of the stall to wash my face.

To my utter shock, Sakura was waiting there and immediately threw her arms around me in a tight hug. My eyes widened, and my body tensed up. She was crying but managed to choke out a thank you.

"It's time for training, you two. Get in line."

I looked over to see Kabuto looking at us, my eyes still wide with shock. The pink-haired girl gingerly pulled away and headed out. I followed robotically.

My wide eyes fell to the ground as I got in line, ignoring everyone's stares. When Sakura hugged me just then, it took everything in me not to shove her away. Terror nearly took over the moment her skin came into contact with mine, and I barely resisted my instincts because I knew it'd hurt her to receive that reaction. Tears rose in my eyes again, and I squeezed them hard to keep them from falling. Yesterday, I never would've guessed how different things would feel today.