Chapter 26

-Sakura's POV-

"Before I begin, do you have anything you want to say?" I asked the teenage boy whom four of my friends were holding down.

A couple days passed, and my energy finally returned, so I was caught up on the situation and convinced to try and extract whatever that dark veiny thing was on the back of the boy's neck. Kankuro, Kiba, Sai, and Shikamaru each held one of his limbs as we made him lay face down on the dining room's hardwood floor.

He'd been interrogated for three days now, and the only thing they could get from him was some nonsense about inhabiting able-bodied humans so they could search for some plant called "Dengen" that none of us had ever heard of. We couldn't get him to tell us where he came from or if he knew how many humans in total have been affected. So, we called it quits and decided to try and save whatever the poor human boy that'd been inhabited name was' life.

"Removing me will not save you. My brothers will eventually come." By saying that, he hinted that all his kind were considered male.

"Okay, then I'm about to start."

A few others were nearby, watching from the doorway to not crowd the area. With a sharp knife, I cut a two-inch opening directly above the center of the bulge on his neck. Sasuke was standing by with a metal bucket so I could quickly toss whatever was about to be removed into it.

Luckily, a few of the guys had ransacked a couple floors of the no-longer-burning asylum, so I had some proper medical supplies like gloves, masks, and first aid kits.

I moved the skin back slightly and held my breath as a wave of nausea overcame me. Whatever that thing was, it was an inky black and shined when the light hit it as though its skin was coated in moisture. Blood was steadily leaking from the wound, but that wasn't what gave it the wet appearance.

Any normal human being would be making some kind of sound in response to the pain, but the kid remained silent the entire time.

Carefully, I grabbed a pair of tweezers and worked them into the wound to gently pull each of the little vein-like outreaches from further within the boy's body. The entire process took nearly an hour, but by the end, I could free the kid from the weird alien thing and heal his injury enough that he would no longer need stitches. I learned my lesson from overdoing it and decided only to use my healing sparingly.

In the bucket with a thick net over the top lay a small creature that looked like a tiny, tiny version of maybe an octopus mixed with a jellyfish but with even thinner tentacles. The center of it, the most significant part that caused the bulge on the neck, was barely bigger than an American quarter. Its slender body moved slowly like a worm or something, and I wondered how it even got into a human to begin with.

The boy didn't wake up immediately after it was removed, and we all agreed it was best to tie him to the chair again just in case he panicked when he woke up. We were all thinking about it even if we didn't want to, but there was a chance he wouldn't wake up at all. Sure, his vitals seemed fine when I checked them, but you can't have any expectations when working with the unknown like this.

"Sakura, I think it's dead."

I turned to see that Ino had joined Sasuke in watching over the metal bucket to ensure the strange creature didn't do anything. When I came over to look, I had to agree that it looked deceased. The shiny black film around it had dulled to a dry gray color, and its limbs appeared stiffened. It was no longer moving.

"What should we do with it?"

I met my best friend's eye before frowning and looking toward the kitchen, "Maybe we should put it in a tupperware or something, just in case."

Sasuke wordlessly headed into the kitchen, only to return with a bowl big enough to store the thing inside. Then, we all stared at one another when we realized someone would have to move it.

After an intense match of rock paper scissors, Ino drew the short stick and used a pair of tongs from the kitchen so she wouldn't have to touch it directly. Then, we sealed the tupperware and put it back in the bucket with the net over it just to be entirely sure it wouldn't escape if it was only pretending to be dead.

With that mess over and done, Kiba and Kankuro moved the boy back into the study, and the rest of us cleaned up the mess in the dining room. Once that was finished, everyone took turns spending an hour or so outdoors jogging or training in pairs, so no one was alone in case of an emergency. By night's fall, I did one last check-up on the still-unconscious boy before retiring to the bedroom.

When I got there, I let out a small shriek of surprise. Ino, Sasuke, and Sai were in the middle of what seemed to be a strip poker game. They were using what appeared to be pieces of jewelry as money, and everyone appeared to be at the same skill level because not one of them had all of their clothes on. Ino had no shirt on, Sasuke had only one sock, and Sai had no belt or socks.

"What's with the red face, Sakura? Come play! We're only a few hands in." All three gave me amused looks when I instinctively opened my mouth to decline the offer, which annoyed me enough to make me agree.

After sitting in between Ino and Sasuke, I was given a few rounds to learn the rules before it was time to get serious. The way they explained it, just because you don't win a hand doesn't mean you have to remove an item of clothing. If you have the worst hand and don't fold, though, you're out of luck.

All three of my opponents were amazing bluffers, and I quickly realized I'd been tricked into being humiliated.

"Ha! Sakura, you lose again! Take 'em off!"

We were multiple rounds in, and I'd lost most of them. My socks, belt, sweater, and tank top had been removed already. My face was blazing as I got to my feet to slip out of my jeans, crossing my legs when I sat back down to try and ease my discomfort.

Ino was in her bra and underwear, but she still had her socks on, meaning she did it because she wanted to. Regardless, it helped me cope because I wasn't the only one. Sai was in his boxers with a shirt on, and Sasuke wore jeans with no belt or shirt.

"I-I don't know if I want to play another hand," I stuttered nervously as Sai dealt the cards.

Ino cackled, "You can't chicken out now that things are getting good! Besides, everyone here's seen a naked body before. Chill out."

Sasuke and I kept accidentally making eye contact, and I looked away each time with a blush, but he seemed exceedingly amused at my lack of skill. The room was quiet as the hand played out, and luckily Sai lost this one.

"Whoo! Take it off, Babe!" The Uchiha brother in question tugged his shirt off over his head, jokingly swatting Ino's hands away when she reached over to touch his abs.

Suddenly, a knock was at the door, and we all turned to see Kankuro and Kiba standing there. My face erupted into an even hotter blush, and I dove behind Sasuke's much larger form to hide my bare skin from them. The man just laughed.

"The kid woke up. We thought you guys would want to know," Kiba said.

Kankuro sputtered that he nearly cut off the Inuzuka boy, "But he can wait. What've we got here? Strip poker? I am so in!"

With a hand on either of Sasuke's shoulders, I whispered in his ear, "G-Grab my shirt for me!" He just reached back to mess up my hair with one hand before ignoring my desperate request.

"We should probably check on the kid first, but you can join when we finish that, okay? You too, Kiba!" The Subaku brother formed a triumphant fist, while Kiba just blushed but agreed nonetheless.

Left with no choice, I fumbled to pull Sasuke's shirt over my head since it was the only one I could reach, and it was long enough to cover my underwear. Kankuro snickered at my red face as I gingerly came out from behind the Uchiha man to grab my clothes, "You're almost as shy as Matsuri. You're totally hot, so what's up with that?"

My face fell in disbelief at his casual flirting. No one came to my defense, but everyone laughed at my humiliated face. I tugged my jeans back on before flipping off the older Subaku brother and leading downstairs to the study.

Our party sobered up on the way there, and I knocked on the door softly before entering, "I'm coming in, okay?" The boy may find it overwhelming if six strangers approached him while he was tied up, so to keep him calm, I told everyone else to wait outside until I said otherwise.

The kid could be anywhere from twelve to fifteen, I couldn't tell, but he had messy brown hair and big brown eyes. Tears were falling steadily down his tanned face as I approached, and he yelled in a terrified voice, "Where am I? Who are you people!"

I put my hands up in defense and knelt down a yard or so in front of him so we could see one another properly, but I also kept some distance so he knew I didn't mean him harm, "My name's Sakura. My friends and I aren't going to hurt you, okay? We're here to help. Can you tell me your name? Maybe how old you are or where you're from?"

He sniffled and nodded, "My name's Konohamaru. I'm from Konoha, and I'm sixteen. Why am I tied up if you aren't going to hurt me?"

My eyes widened in surprise. He was a long way from home, just like some of us. I decided it would be best to be honest with him, "There was some kind of creature inside the back of your neck. It was controlling your body, so I cut it out. It's gone now, but do you know what it was? Do you remember anything from the past few days?"

A faraway expression crossed his face, and his tears stopped when a look of realization then came over him, "The last thing I remember was…leaving Sana so I could look for some medical supplies. I snuck past this shooter guy that was around, but when I got to the asylum, it was on fire. Then everything goes black."

My brow furrowed, "What does Sana look like?" My heart ached in my chest as I waited for his response. I prayed that it wasn't the little blond girl they accidentally killed.

When they told me about that, I was stunned into silence. Of course, I know that no one would kill a child on purpose, and they'd only come in with guns blazing because Matsuri was clearly being hurt, but ending the life of someone so young wasn't something to just brush off. It was tragic.

"She's about the same height as me with pale skin, black hair, and brown eyes. Have you guys seen her? Is she here too?"

I shook my head, "As far as I'm aware, none of us have come across someone like that." My eyes danced over his tied-up body before meeting his eye again. My instincts told me that this boy was solely a victim and wouldn't harm us.

"If I untie you, do you promise not to try anything? We won't hold you captive or anything, but you're welcome to stay with our group if you want. We're heading to Konoha soon, anyway, so we can help you get home."

He nodded, "I promise, but can I look for Sana before we leave? She saved me before, so I want to see if she's okay."

I gestured for the others in the doorway to come in and spoke with Ino once she was closer, "Can you get him something to eat and drink?" She nodded, giving the terrified boy a reassuring smile before leaving the room.

Kiba hesitantly sniffed the air before sighing in relief, "You sure smell a hell of a lot better."

Kankuro, who'd gone behind the chair to untie the boy's bindings, snickered, "That's hella rude, bro."

Once free, Konohamaru rose to his feet and stretched out his arms and legs with a soft groan. His muscles were likely sore from sitting in the same position for a few days. When he stood, he was slightly shorter than Kiba, the shortest of the guys at 5'9 (179 cm). He had quite the baby face, but once I saw him standing, I could see that he was likely telling the truth about his age.

I gave him a reassuring look and outstretched my hand, feeling a bit cheesy but also feeling like the act would help him feel more comfortable, "It's nice to meet you, Konohamaru."

A light blush dusted his face as he shook it, "Yeah, you too."