Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Hmm... I feel terrible... as if a group of midgets made a plot to kick me the whole damn night...

I opened my eyes and looked around, I was in some kind of forest, I could hear birds singing and see the sun's rays piercing through some leaves, so I guessed it was daytime.

- Finally, you wake up, brat - someone growled.

I quickly jumped up and pulled my knives out of the seal in my hand. Or so I would have, if I didn't find myself tied to a tree and didn't feel my chakra being held back by something, possibly a seal.

The sudden movement I made in trying to get up only served to make the pain throughout my body suddenly increase.

Argh! Damn, that hurts.

- Stupid kid - muttered the voice from before.

Looking at the place where the voice came from, I froze. Sitting on top of some rocks, while eating, was Kakuzu, without his akatsuki cloak, exposing his baked limbs and the marks of recent injuries. At his feet were the bodies of 3 Anbu and a man who looked like a civilian.

- Why...

The question I was about to ask was interrupted, due to memories of the previous day finally coming to my mind.

If I am with him, then my parents... no... no, no, no, no, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO!

An immense rage invaded my body and I demanded only one thing. Blood.

- Son of a bitch! I'm going to kill you! - I shouted at the renegade ninja as I tried to free myself from the wire that held me against the tree.

- Oh come on, I just got free from some asshole who kept yelling the same thing, don't you start doing it too - he complained.

- Shut your damn mouth and let go of me so I can kill you! - I yelled again.

- Tch, you ungrateful brat.

Ungrateful? UNGRACEFUL?! WHAT THE FUCK SHOULD I BE GRATEFUL FOR?! THAT YOU KILLED MY PARENTS?! THAT YOU KIDNAPPED ME?!!!

- WHAT THE...

My words were cut off by a punch in my face from Kakuzu.

- Shut your damn mouth if you don't want me to break every bone in your body one more time - he snarled.

- Fuck you - I said, before spitting in his face.

- Hmph, if I didn't need you in good shape, you'd be nothing but a bloody pulp on the floor right now. And if I hadn't taken that stupid doctor's heart too - the last part he mumbled.

So is that why I'm not dead yet? Does he need me for something? Hum... now that I think about it, he said something about using me to make money before he knocked me out, but I'm not sure what he meant.

My thoughts were interrupted by a strange new carnivorous plant-like creature coming out of a tree.

Is that Zetsu? It looks uglier in person...

- Kakuzu, what the hell have you been doing, where's Hidan? - he asked.

- Zetsu, what are you doing here?

- Answer my question first.

- There was a little mishap during our last fight, but it's taken care of.

- And Hidan? Besides, what about the boy?

- Hidan is dead - answered Kakuzu, while a smile formed on his face.

- What do you mean he's dead? That's impossible, he's immortal.

- I'm not entirely sure, but the father of that brat - he pointed at me - He used some kind of suicide jutsu that disintegrated a big part of where we were fighting next to his wife's body and Hidan's body.

- Tch, this won't please Pain-sama - muttered Zetsu.

- Now tell me, what are you doing here?

- I came to see why you and Hidan were absent for another meeting. Pain-sama won't be happy about what happened. Were you at least able to retrieve Hidan's ring before he died?

- No, I had to do a quick kawarimi on his body so he wouldn't get caught in the blast.

- Can't you stop killing your teammates for once? - complained Zetsu - I'll have to go back to that village and look for the ring, it's necessary for Pain-sama's plans.

- Do what you want, I need to get this over quickly and then report to Pain-sama before he decides to assassinate me.

- Fine, but Kakuzu, remember, you've already pissed Pain-sama off 2 times, the third will likely be the last.

- Anyway.

Kakuzu formed an earth clone and made it lift me up.

- By the way, what do you need the brat for? - Zetsu asked.

- This kid is my golden goose, he will give me a lot of money - answered Kakuzu, with a big smile on his face.

- You said the same thing about the last one - pointed out Zetsu.

- That one was an idiot, he only had a few fighting skills and it was more like a test to know how difficult the opponents would be in that place.

- Alright, do what you have to do and report to Pain-sama.

- Good.

After that, Zetsu sank back into the tree and disappeared.

- Alright, time for us to move too, it's only a couple of hours to go and I don't want to keep Pain-sama waiting any longer.

Before I could say anything, I felt the clone wrap all my hands and feet with its black threads and pull me out of the tree.

- Are you going to do this the easy way or the hard way? - Kakuzu asked.

- Make this bastard let go of me and find out for yourself - I growled.

- Then the hard way - he muttered - Give him something to eat so he won't starve to death, then tie him up and cover his mouth, we don't need him screaming and kicking all the way - he said to the clone.

Hearing this, I tried to resist, but I couldn't, as the black threads started to completely wrap around my body, then the clone put something in my mouth and covered it with more threads. The only parts of my body that I could move freely were my neck and eyes.

- All right, let's move.

Kakuzu and his clone started jumping from branch to branch, while I tried futilely to free myself from the black threads that had me trapped.

During our "journey", so to speak, several anbu with the leaf symbol on their masks appeared, I assumed that this was the help Aoki had asked for from the village, but they could do absolutely nothing in the face of Kakuzu's overwhelming strength, as he killed them all with utmost ease.

After several more attempts to get loose from the strings, I simply resigned myself and let them carry me away while I ate what I now knew was bread in my mouth in parts. I would wait until the clone got distracted and try again to escape, but until that happened, I would simply stand still and conserve the little food the clone had given me as much as possible.

The trip took about two more hours. If the position of the sun was correct, it was around 6 pm, by which point we had reached some sort of port city and boarded the first boat Kakuzu found available.

This place vaguely reminds me of Nami no Kuni, but the town I lived in was supposed to be on the border with Kusa and Taki, and Nami was supposedly near Uzu and that's in the same direction as Kiri, so basically we would have to have traveled about a quarter of the fire country to get here, not to mention that we would have to have passed too close to Konoha... *sigh* I guess thinking about it too much won't do any good.

- Where do you wish to go? - asked a young man sitting on the boat.

- The paradise of the rich," replied Kakuzu, in a serious voice.

The man sitting on the boat looked at Kakuzu suspiciously and then spoke again.

- I don't know any place with the name; The paradise of the rich. So please get off my boat, sir.

- Tch, don't play games with me boy, I've been to that island and back more times than you've been on a boat, so fire this thing up and start with the journey or I'll have to throw you into the sea and use it myself - growled the renegade ninja, as he let out a bit of his killer instinct.

While I developed a sort of "resistance" to the killer instinct since I was little, because Aoki and Akio often used it to give an order to the village anbus or when a businessman came and said something that annoyed either of them, I never learned how to use it. Releasing killer instinct was a foreign concept to me, although Aoki had taught me a variation, which was the one normally used by his father, Tobirama, which was to simply release the chakra and spread it around the area. It wasn't as effective as the killer instinct, as you needed fairly large chakra reserves and for that chakra to be dense enough, but it was good enough for me because I had almost all the requirements, I just lacked my chakra to be a bit denser, but that would be fixed with age.

It was strangely amusing to see the seated young man stand up so quickly and start the boat's engine.

- 'Of course, sir,' said the young man, as he began to pull away from the harbor in the direction of the open sea.

Come to think of it, wasn't the rich man's paradise an island in the middle of nowhere? If I remember correctly, it appeared in the chapters after Shippuden, the ones where Sasuke was the main character. Hum... I also remember that, on that island, there was some kind of coliseum where the rich people did clandestine fights with children and teenagers with kekkei genkai... wait... oh, hell...

Realizing what was in my future, I began to writhe wildly in the clone's arms.

- Hold still you damn brat," growled the clone, as it tightened its grip on the threads in my body.

I'm not going to stay still when they're taking me to an island full of rich people who will pay to watch me fight another person in an arena as if we were animals!

- Sir, if you don't mind my curiosity, would it be wrong of me to assume that you are going to a rich man's paradise to take that child? - asked the boatman.

- Why else would I go to the paradise of the rich with a child? - Kakuzu replied.

- Good point - muttered the young man.

After several unsuccessful attempts to escape, the clone decided to tighten the strings around my body even tighter and leave me on the floor of the boat.

Well, I won't be able to get out of this easily, so... What about the coliseum? Other than that it's for rich people, and they fight people with kekkei genkai. Mmm... I think that's it... oh, wait, now I remember, there was also a strange guy with a dojutsu, and I think a girl too, although I don't know if they were related somehow, the only thing I know for sure was that those eyes could make you explode... yeah... sounds like I'll have a horrible time in that place...

It had been about an hour since we left the port. Kakuzu's clone had decided to lift me on his shoulders once again and thanks to this I could see an island with huge buildings glowing brightly in the dark. The sight in front of my eyes reminded me a bit of Vegas, the only difference being that in Vegas there was no underground fighting coliseum. I think...

- Well, this is as far as I'm allowed to go, sir," said the boat driver.

- Well, then you are no longer of any use to me - exclaimed Kakuzu, as threads came out of his arm and impaled the young man.

I could see the life draining from his eyes and blood pouring from his chest. Once he was dead, the renegade ninja threw him into the sea and drove the boat to the shore of the island.

Once we arrived, a group of subjects in samurai armor surrounded us and unsheathed their swords.

- Identify yourself and state your reason for coming - demanded one of the subjects.

- I am Kakuzu and I come to see Oyashiro. Now I will tell you this only once, either get out of my way or I will kill you all - Kakuzu growled.

I could see all the samurai tense up at Kakuzu's words and quickly they all bowed in respect.

- I'm sorry Kakuzu-sama, Oyashiro-sama told us you were coming, although we didn't think it would be so late - said the samurai from before.

Wow, looks like Kakuzu is known here, though I shouldn't be surprised, he's a crazy money addicted ninja living since the time of the first hokage, I'm sure he had to have come to see the place at some point. But... Oyashiro... why does that name ring a bell? Hmm... Oh, I remember! That was the name of the guy with the dojutsu!

- Tch, whatever you say, now take me to Oyashiro.

- Of course, please follow me.

For some reason, we had turned off the road leading to the huge glowing city in the middle of the island. We had taken one that went around the city and was inside what looked like a mountain. The path was a dark, damp, and cold corridor with torches every few feet. Once we reached the end, the samurai from before put his hand on a seal, and one of the walls opened, giving way to a fighting arena surrounded by bleachers filled with people in expensive costumes.

- Why, Kakuzu, let me tell you that I was surprised to receive your message that you were coming to the coliseum with a new fighter after the past failure - said a man.

- Oyashiro - growled Kakuzu.

- So, this is your new fighter? - Oyashiro asked as he looked at me curiously.

- Yes, now prepare a fight against one of the 10 - said Kakuzu.

After saying that, he undid the clone and dropped me on the ground like I was a trash bag.

Argh, you bastard!

- Are you sure he can take one of the 10? He doesn't look like a very skilled kid, he's too young and skinny, the last one you brought looked better than this one, although well, we both know how that turned out," said Oyashiro, with a mocking expression on his face.

I could see the annoyance in Kakuzu's eyes and waited to see how the threads came out of his body and killed the man in front of him, but surprisingly he didn't do it.

- Tch, whatever you say, just do it.

- You know that setting up a fight against one of the 10 requires additional cost, right?

Kakuzu made a hand signal and in a cloud of smoke, a black briefcase appeared in his hand.

- There it is, now prepare for combat.

- Good - sighed Oyashiro as he took the briefcase.

He signaled with his free hand and in a swirl of fire, a huge man appeared. The man had white skin, was almost pale, wore a gray tunic and pants, and on his forehead, he wore a red scarf and looked at me with annoyance.

The guy lifted me off the ground roughly and looked at Oyashiro for instructions.

- Prepare him for combat.

The guy just nodded and followed by that, I could feel a strong blow to the back of my head. The last thing I saw before passing out was the amused expression on Kakuzu's face.

- You brat! Wake up! - someone shouted.

I woke up alertly, then felt myself being doused with cold water.

- Damn it, Aoki, how many times are you going to do this? - I groaned as I wiped the water out of my eyes to get a good look.

- Who the hell is Aoki?

...huh?

I looked up, in the direction where the water came from, and I could see the huge guy from before, standing a few feet away from me and holding a bucket still dripping water in his hands. He was in a hallway behind some huge bars.

- Who are you? - I asked.

- Tch, you don't care about my name, now get ready, you're next - he growled.

- What the hell are you talking about, next for what?

At that moment I remembered everything that had happened and how I ended up there.

Oh, damn it, this can't be true.

- Open the door! - he shouted.

After that, I could see two huge doors behind me open, giving way to an incredibly intense light and screams.

- So loud - I complained.

- Hey! Move it at once! They're waiting for you! - shouted the guy from before.

Knowing what awaited me if I left that place, I moved away from the doors and refused to go in.

- Fine, then I'll force you out! - said the guy, making hand signals - Suiton: Suidan no Jutsu.

After saying that, a stream of water came out of his mouth, throwing me out of the doors. Once I was on the other side of the doors, I heard them close behind me.

Tch, you fucking bastard.

I heard the screaming increase enormously. I stood up and tried to get my vision to adjust to the strong lights in the place.

- Ladies and gentlemen! thanks to the request of one of the owners of these competitors, this will be a special match! it will be a fight to the death! - a man's voice was heard all around.

When my vision finally adjusted to the light, I could see that I was in a fighting arena.

Yeah... this will not end well for me...

- Competitors, the rules are simple! THE WINNER IS THE ONE WHO SURVIVES!

The voice's declaration caused everyone in the audience to start shouting even louder than before. Some were standing up from their seats and calling for blood, others were simply staring at the arena with the same blood lust in their eyes.

Sick bastards...

- Hey, kid! What's the matter?! Are you scared?!

I heard someone's voice near me, so I looked in his direction. He was a light-skinned teenager with short brown hair tied in a ponytail. His eyes were green and he had no pupils. He was wearing a dark yellow vest with a black shirt underneath and gray pants.

- Who are you? - I asked.

- I'm Futsu, one of the best fighters in this place, but right now, I'm just Futsu, your assassin - he exclaimed with an arrogant voice.

Futsu? Hum... wasn't that the name of the teenager who fights with Sasuke when he comes in here and wants to save them? If I remember correctly, this kid has Futton's kekkei genkai, but that's all I know about him.

Suddenly, the one called Futsu threw a kunai at me. It didn't move as fast as the ones Aoki threw at me while we were training together, but it was fast enough to be a nuisance. I moved my head to the side and let the weapon follow through and embed itself in a wall.

- Heh, you seem to be somewhat fast, but that won't be enough - Futsu said, still with his arrogant tone.

The arrogance of this idiot is irritating me. How is someone like him supposed to be one of the strongest in this place? He can barely throw a kunai decently, and I doubt his kekkei genkai would carry him that far.

Futsu ran in my direction and launched a quick chain of punches, which I dodged with some difficulty due to still being somewhat dazed from the lights, the screams, and having just woken up a few minutes ago.

- Tch, stop moving you damn brat - he growled as he moved a bit away and went through several hand signals - Futton: Kōmu no Jutsu!

After that, he expelled a thick mist from his mouth that approached my direction.

Hmm, if I remember correctly, that jutsu was one that the Mizukage used when Sasuke tried to kill Danzo at the Kages' meeting. That damn thing could melt Susanoo, so I'd rather not know what it could do to my body.

I instinctively made a kawarimi with the kunai Futsu had thrown earlier and watched in morbid fascination as the weapon quickly melted.

Wow, looks like my chakra is no longer sealed, that'll make this easier.

- Oh, so the brat knows a few tricks. This might be interesting - said the teenager as he ran towards me.

He assaulted me with another flurry of punches, though this time I didn't focus on dodging them, but on counterattacking.

I ducked under a kick and swept his supporting leg, causing him to fall backwards, but before he hit the ground, I grabbed his leg still in the air and threw him away from me, using chakra in my arms for extra strength. Before he could crash to the ground, he flipped in mid-air and landed on his feet.

- Looks like you have some strength too. I must admit that you are better than the former fighter that Kakuzu-sama brought here," said the boy.

Hearing Kakuzu's name I couldn't help but let some of my anger come out, after all, this was the man who had killed my parents, kidnapped me, and now made me fight in an underground fighting arena. I squinted at the boy who was looking at me with amusement and let out a small growl.

- Oh, so you're upset with your master, poor boy," he sneered.

- That bastard son of a bitch is not my master - I growled.

- Whatever you say, boy, it's not like I care about your sentimental situation with your master, just let me finish my mission so I can go get something to eat - he said while shrugging his shoulders.

- What mission are you talking about? - I asked.

- You will die anyway, so I see no reason not to tell you - he answered - I was told that I would have to fight and kill one of Kakuzu's slaves since my partner, who was in charge of these matters, was not available to do so.

- Oh, so your mission was to kill me... would I be wrong to assume that Oyashiro gave you this mission?

- Oyashiro-sama, you damn brat, don't you dare talk about him as if you know him - he became annoyed.

Looks like I hit a weak spot... this should be fun.

- Gee, sorry, I didn't know you were a devoted follower of the albino guy who seems to be in charge of these fights, I'm sorry for my disrespect before your master - I said, with obvious sarcasm in my words.

- Tch, you fucking idiot kid, Oyashiro-sama is a kind person, he would never do something like that. Now I'm going to kill you in the most painful way possible - he growled.

But you just said he sent you to kill me?

- Oops, did you get angry? Please calm down, your dear Oyashiro-sama wouldn't want to see you like this, surely if you act like the submissive dog you surely are, he will reward you with a cookie.

My words had the desired effect, as Futsu started running towards me with clear madness in his eyes.

Heh, too easy.

I waited for the angry teenager to get a little closer and launched a chain of punches that Aoki had forced me to learn like the back of my hand.

Right and left to the center of the abdomen to knock him out of breath, then an uppercut with all my might to the chin to lift him a few inches in the air, followed by that, a spinning kick to the side of the ribs. If the opponent didn't go down with that, you must throw a kunai or jutsu while he is stunned.

By the time I finished my combo of blows, Futsu had fallen back to the ground.

- Hugh, you hit hard for a kid.

- If you stay on the ground I won't attack you - I said, watching him get up.

- Heh, and let the idiot who spoke so disrespectfully of Oyashiro-sama win? Never! I'm going to kill you just as it was my mission from the beginning and then I'll take your head to my master as a token that I'm a useful fighter and worthy of being his future back guard - he exclaimed.

It's pitiful to see what blind devotion can do to a person...

*sigh* - Whatever you say - I said, waiting for my opponent's attack.

Damn you Kakuzu, it's your fault I'm in this situation.

I gritted my teeth hard, at the thought that I would have to kill someone before he could do the same to me.

- Can't you just give up? - I asked one last time.

- You wish - he said, as he went through hand signals.

I stared into Futsu's eyes for a few moments and then started going through my hand signals.

At the same time we said;

- Futton: Kōmu no Jutsu

- Suiton: Teppōdama

I started throwing water spheres, one after another, while Futsu disabled them with his corrosive mist. We did this for a while until I realized we weren't going to get anywhere like this, then I decided to go for plan B.

I did another set of hand signals and said; Magen: Narakumi no Jutsu. After that, the mist stopped coming out of Futsu's mouth and I could see his eyes start to cloud over.

I don't think the genjutsu will last long, I need to put him in a position where my victory is clear.

I channeled some chakra into my legs and ran towards the teenager under the illusion. Once I was at his side, I jumped up and threw a strong kick to his head, unfortunately, he managed to get out of my genjutsu in time to dodge the blow and counterattack with his kick. His foot impacted against my back and sent me flying.

Before falling face first, to the ground, I used my hands to propel myself upwards and flip in the air, thus landing on my feet.

- That was disgusting," muttered Futsu.

- Would it be too much to ask you to surrender? - I insisted again.

- You're a damn nuisance! I told you I'm not giving up! - he shouted, as he went through a different set of hand signals - Suiton: Suidan no Jutsu - he said, as a torrent of water came out of his mouth.

Damn it!

I ran back and forth dodging the water from my opponent, meanwhile, I was trying to think of a plan to end this fight.

Well, let's see, I only know one attack jutsu, and the others are defensive. Hmm... I could try to combine one with the Teppōdama, but I'm not sure how well that would work out, after all, I've never tried it before...

- Stop running and fight already! - shouted one of the spectators.

Followed by him, at least 9 other people were yelling the same thing at me.

- Tch shut the fuck up you bastard - I muttered.

Okay, I guess I have no choice but to try. I hope it works.

I made the Teppōdama signals and threw some water spheres. Futsu had to cancel his jutsu and move to not get hit by the water spheres, I took advantage of that moment of distraction to make more hand signals and use; Magen: Kokoni Arazu no Jutsu, on some of the spheres, making them invisible.

Please let it work, please let it work.

Just as he expected, Futsu didn't see the attack coming and was hit in the side by several invisible water spheres.

Now!

I used chakra on my legs and ran as fast as I could in his direction. In a few seconds, I was at his side and punched him hard in the face, causing him to fall to the ground crawling.

- Don't take this personally, it's the law of survival - I muttered.

Before he could get up, I delivered a chakra-charged kick to his face, effectively knocking him out.

I dropped to the ground, happy that this was over.

Well, at least I didn't have to kill him, the amount of chakra in my legs wasn't high enough for the kick to take his head off.

I hadn't noticed, but everyone had gone quiet for some reason. As I looked out into the audience, I could see them looking in the direction of the door I had entered through, there, standing there and looking at me with a smile on his face, was Oyashiro, followed by the guy from before and an even bigger guy.

Is he for real? Come on, I just finished a damn fight, I'm hungry and I'm sure that, if I tried to escape, Kakuzu would stop me.

- It's good to see that the guy Kakuzu brought this time is not useless, but... your fight is not over yet, that guy is still alive, finish him off and claim victory - he exclaimed while raising his arms.

- I'm not going to kill him, he's already finished, there's no need to go that far - I said, looking at him cautiously.

This guy had a dojutsu that could make people explode, I shouldn't take him lightly, and those huge guys behind him look strong.

- This is a death match, which means one must die, and the one knocked out is the guy over there, so it's your obligation as his opponent to kill him and claim victory.

- I said I wasn't going to do it - I growled in annoyance.

- Yes... Kakuzu told me you would refuse to do it - he sighed, as he took off his glasses - Let Oyashiro-sama give you some help - he said, as he quickly approached me and put his hand on my shoulder.

I could see how his eyes began to change. His sclera had taken on a completely red color, the iris was black and the pupil had transformed into a horizontal bar of white.

- Now, kill him - he murmured in my ear.

I could feel my body stand up without my permission.

What the hell?

I tried to stop, but I was unable to, I tried to scream, but I couldn't either, it was as if my body was no longer mine. I felt like a puppet and this guy was the puppeteer pulling the strings of my body to make me do what he wanted.

I watched as Oyashiro handed me a kunai and pointed at Futsu. My body began to move robotically in the direction of the unconscious teenager.

No! Don't do it! Stop damn it!

Once my body was next to Futsu's, I knelt down and stabbed the kunai into the teenager's neck.

I could feel the weapon cut into the flesh and thrust deep inside the body of my already defeated opponent. Blood suddenly started pouring out, staining my hands and face. At some point I had begun to tremble, apparently, I had already regained the mobility of my body, but I had not noticed it.

For some reason I couldn't take my eyes off Futsu's lifeless body, it was like a window to the past showing me what I did in my previous life. I couldn't stop the memory of the old me doing the same thing to someone else from popping into my mind. I could see how the image of that other person was superimposed over Futsu's, it was strange, but I felt no sadness, no remorse for what I had just done, it was more like a feeling of emptiness. It was as if all my emotions had suddenly died, leaving behind a great calm.

- You deserved it... - I muttered without realizing it.

- Wow, looks like Kakuzu's boy is as ruthless as he is - Oyashiro said with amusement clear in his words.

When I finally regained my senses, I realized what I had said and done. I tried to feel guilty, but I couldn't, I tried to feel sad, but I couldn't, I tried to get the images out of my head, but I couldn't either.

- Look at it boy, you will spend the rest of your life remembering that image, the image of your first death - Oyashiro murmured in my ear.

Heh... what a stupid joke...

- Don't touch me - I growled while hitting the hand Oyashiro had on my shoulder.

I tried to attack him with a jutsu but was stopped by the men accompanying him.

- I'll have to teach you some manners at some point, but for now, enjoy your victory, little assassin - he said, raising his arms to show me the cheering crowd.

- Fuck you - I said, as I spat at him.

* Elsewhere

- Heh, I told you the brat would give me money, didn't I, Zetsu? - said Kakuzu, as he counted the bills in a briefcase.

- You should be more worried about the explanation you'll give Pain-sama. I don't think he'll be happy when you tell him you found a way to get rid of Hidan, the so-called immortal man," Zetsu replied.

- I'll figure something out, for now, I'll enjoy my hard earned money - he exclaimed, as he closed the huge briefcase and walked away.

Zetsu stayed a few seconds longer, looking at the boy held in the arena by Oyashiro's men.

- This might interest Tobi... - he said, as he sank to the ground.

*With Hideki*

Once the cheers from the audience ended, Oyashiro motioned for his men to follow him and take me with him. We walked to the gates again and then continued down some cold, damp corridors that reminded me of how we came to this place. Oyashiro had said we were going to my cell, but I was sure that wasn't all.

- Alright kid, you beat one of the best fighters in the coliseum in a duel to the death, therefore, all his stuff is yours now.

If that teenager was one of the best, I don't want to imagine how he would be the worst...

- Does this always happen when you beat one of the best? - I asked, trying to get as much information as possible from this place.

- Only if you beat him in a duel to the death, if you do it in a normal duel, you would only get a raise in your ranking.

- Ranking?

- Yes, the fighters have rankings, I figured you would notice because of the numbers on the clothing.

I looked down at the clothes I was wearing.

I honestly hadn't realized I had changed my clothes...this is disturbing.....

I noticed that the jacket I was wearing, had the number "58" stamped on it.

Hmm... the drow... this must be some kind of joke...

- When the other bouts are over, you will receive a new jacket with the number "10" - he said, as he opened a door.

- Tatsu was number 10? - I asked.

-Yes, he was.

- And what benefits does it give you to have a high ranking?

- It depends on how high it is, for example, Tatsu was number 10 only, so his only benefit was to have a cell away from the rest of the fighters, just like the other 9. On the other hand, number 1, has a pretty good room, with whatever he wants in it.

- Who is number 1?

- If I remember correctly, a guy not much older than you who has Hyōton's kekkei genkai, and is quite skilled at using it - he answered, with a hand on his chin and a thoughtful expression.

Hyōton? Wasn't that Haku's kekkei genkai? But in theory, he should be with Zabuza right now, though there might be more Hyōton users since I'm not sure if the bloodline purges started already in Kiri. Though it may also be Haku, after all, Kishimoto never bothered to explain what Haku and Zabuza did before they met Team 7, other than run from Kiri's anbu and seek to survive.

- What about the other 8? - I asked.

- The second one is a friend of the Hyōton boy, he's a pretty skilled water element user, and the third one is Tatsu's brother.

I'm screwed...

- Oh...

- Relax, I don't think he's out for revenge.

- That "I think" doesn't convince me.

Oyashiro just shrugged and opened another door. When we passed through it, there was a large hallway lit by torches, with cells on the right and left sides. In all of them, there were at least some people looking at Oyashiro and his men with clear hatred in their eyes.

- Your cell is almost at the end of the corridor - he said while ignoring the stares of the captives.

- I have a question.

- Ask it.

- What will I do from now on, fight every day until someone defeats or kills me?

- Very succinctly, yes.

Tch, I figured it would be something like that.

- And what do I get if I beat my opponents?

- Nothing, just stay alive. On the other hand, Kakuzu will get more and more money with every victory of yours, after all, people usually bet on their fighters, so Kakuzu should just bet on you and wait for you to win so that a briefcase full of betting money will be waiting for him at the reception.

That explains why he wanted to bring me to this place. Tch, the bastard is using me as his income generator.

It seems my annoyance showed on my face as Oyashiro spoke again.

- Oh, come on, don't bother with him, look at the bright side.

- What bright side?

- Well... if you get out of this place someday, you'll be someone strong - he shrugged his shoulders.

- Is there a chance I'll get out of this place?

- Only if your master wants you to.

You're kidding, right? That bastard would never let his source of money go.

- Here we are," said Oyashiro, as one of his men opened a cell.

The cell looked like a typical torture chamber you might find in some MMORPG dungeon. Its doors were thick steel bars that would open outward, inside it was somewhat small and made completely of stone bricks, it was lit by what looked like a seal at the top and there was only a bed made of smooth stone with a pillow that looked harder than the bed itself and a toilet. Next to the bed was some kind of box covered by a dark sheet, I assumed that's where Tatsu's things were, so I didn't pay too much attention to it.

This place is... gloomy, disgusting, cold, humid, empty, and... well, at least I can emphasize that it is only for me...

- Alright, in a few hours one of these guys will be here to show you how to get to the dining room and the showers, you can use the shower during the nights, but I wouldn't if I were you, some of the fighters here can be... creative... to call it that way.

- What do you mean?

- Trust me, you don't want to know - he replied with a strange smile on his face.

- Okay...

- Well, we'll surely meet again, so try not to kill anyone outside of deathmatches, although well... no one follows that rule... - the last part he muttered as he closed the cell.

Hmm, come to think of it, Oyashiro was too nice to me if we take out the part where he forced me to kill someone and ordered his men to take me away like I was some sort of ultra-dangerous prisoner. He was also willing to answer all my questions...I don't like this...I feel like he wants something from me and that leaves me with a rather uncomfortable feeling.

I walked all over the cell, looking for something that could help me escape from that place, though obviously, I found nothing, the walls of the place were completely solid, I tried to use chakra in my hands to break them with blows, but I felt like I was being restrained for some reason, like when I had my chakra sealed.

Oh, come on, not again.

I sat down on the "bed" and pulled the box with Tatsu's stuff closer to see if I had anything that might be of use to me.

- Alright, let's see what you had - I mumbled as I removed the sheet and put it next to the pillow.

In the box, there wasn't much, just a couple of kunai, shurikens, some wire, a picture of a younger Tatsu next to a woman, old clothes, and some kind of personal diary.

Hum... nothing interesting...

- What the hell am I supposed to do in this place? Aside from fighting people who will possibly want me dead just to move up to the number 10 spot - I sighed - How bad will the other cells be for people to want to move up to this spot? After all, my only benefit is a cell just for me, but it's not a luxury to say...

I looked at the light seal on the ceiling for a few seconds and then stood up.

I guess lying down until Oyashiro's men come won't do any good, I might as well use my time here to become the typical super op protagonist who only has to train for one episode to become practically a god. Or I could also stay there and do nothing, a vacation wouldn't be bad... hum... Aoki would be annoyed with me if he was here and could hear my thoughts... although I surely wouldn't do anything for fear of upsetting Akio.

A feeling of anguish began to fill my body as I remembered them.

I'm sorry, Akio, Aoki, I promised I would protect you, but I did nothing but run and hide like a coward at the moment of truth... at least I would have liked to say goodbye to you, tell you how important you were to me, maybe try to find a way in which you wouldn't have to die in your missions and could come back with me so we could continue being a happy family.... but it doesn't matter anymore, none of that will be possible because of those damn bastards Kakuzu and Hidan... since I couldn't keep my promise to protect them, let me make you a new one.

- I promise you that I will get out of this hole, find Kakuzu and kill him in the cruelest and most agonizing way possible. I will not rest until their deaths are avenged - I muttered.

I got out of bed and began my training routine while I waited for Oyashiro's men.

Someday Kakuzu... I promise you that someday I will crush every one of your hearts in front of you as you agonize in pain.....

Nami (or Nami no Kuni): Land of Waves

Uzu (or Uzushiogakue): Hidden Village of the Whirlpool

Kiri (or Kirigakure): Hidden Village of the Mists

Kekkei Genkai: Bloodline Limit

Suiton: Suidan no Jutsu: Water Element: Water Bullet Jutsu

Suiton: Teppōdama: Water Element: Shoot

Futton: Kōmu no Jutsu: Element of Boiling: Corrosive Mist Jutsu

Hōyton: Element of Ice