A Couple Steps Back

Chapter 15

Trigger warning. 

Third person pov

Everyone in Konoha knew where The Cantaloupe was, and all of them knew not to go near it. It was a regular hang out for all sorts of shady figures, ranging from druggies, to sex offenders, to small-time criminals who were sly enough not to get caught by the Uchiha Police Force. The night club was a pretty run-down looking place, with a neon sign that flickered as the bulbs in it slowly died. At night, anyone on the street could see the bright orange and green cantaloupe sign flashing, a clear intimation that it was open, and not to go anywhere near it. Most avoided that side of town completely during the later hours of the day, especially civilians. 

For some reason, even with all the petitions that seemed to go on surrounding it, they couldn't manage to get it shut down. The building had been there for ages, and once, it had been a pretty popular night club. Even the Hokage had no control over it. They couldn't locate the actual owner of the place, and it wasn't legal to just knock it down. Not while it was still in use. Even if it wasn't a very good place, they were following all the rules needed. They payed the property bills and had all the necessary paperwork filed to keep it in business. And so, the club stayed up, despite it's reputation. 

So when Naruto said those words, that he and his friends had been chased and dragged to The Cantaloupe, Kakashi Hatake almost blew up. 

"They took you WHERE?!" The ANBU, usually so composed and stoic, boomed. They were children, and they'd been dragged to a night club by God knows who. Naruto was missing a toe, and he'd heard something about Sasuke Uchiha missing an entire limb. That, and Naruto was covered in scars he'd never seen before, and he didn't even want to know the state Sasuke and Shikamaru were in. 

The Hokage jumped at the tone of voice Kakashi used, one he had never heard come out of the man's mouth. The outburst was a definite surprise, but then again, so were most of the things he was hearing today. Naruto flinched at the loud tone, looking down. He began to shake. "Sorry! I tried to escape, Inu-san! I did!" Naruto wailed in his defense, tears spilling out of his eyes. He sniffled, trying desperately to wipe his tears away and appear strong. "Who was it? Who did that to you?" Kakashi hissed. Naruto stilled, looking away quickly. "It... It doesn't matter no more." He mumbled. "They're gone."

"Naruto-kun..." The Third trailed off sadly, running a hand over his own face. This whole situation was troubling, and the Hokage wasn't liking what he was hearing. But he had to keep listening. He had to know. "What happened next?" Kakashi gritted out, plopping harshly down into the chair next to the Hokage's. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, and propping his chin up on his hand. He stared intently at Naruto, who swallowed thickly in response. The blonde boy shifted around uncomfortably for a few moments before continuing. His voice had gone ghostly. 

"They knocked us out or somethin'. I dunno, but we did go t' sleep... or somethin'. And when we woke up, it was really dark. There was a cloth over my eyes, and I was all tied up. Shikamaru and Sasuke were there too. Shikamaru's chakra was real slow and hard to feel, so I think he was still asleep. Sasuke's was goin' crazy, and I could hear him wiggling around." Naruto's voice shook as he recalled it, his eyes wide with fear. Kakashi wanted to reach out to him, but wasn't sure what he'd do if he did. Would he pat his head and tell him things would be okay? Hold his other hand? Pat his shoulder? He didn't know what to do, and he felt useless of it.

"What happened next, Naruto?" Hiruzen's voice was soft, but you could tell he was holding back a tidal wave of rage. Kakashi wasn't surprised. He too was quite upset with the whole thing, and he wasn't even sure what those men had done to them yet. It definitely was something horrible. I mean, Naruto was missing a toe and had a huge-ass scar on his neck for God's sake, pardon the French! Kakashi just couldn't get over Naruto's new appearance. Even without looking at the boy, the images of his healed-injuries were stuck in his head. 

"Well, I dunno how long we laid there, but it was a long time. It was really cold. I think the ground was concrete, but... rougher. I dunno. Shikamaru woke up and started groaning, but we had things in our mouths. They're called... called..." Naruto struggled to think of the right word, looking to Kakashi and The Hokage for help. Kakashi felt his heart drop. The Hokage looked near tears, clearly horrified by where this was going. "Gags?" Hiruzen tried. Kakashi had never heard such a small voice come out of a Kage. "Yeah, that." Naruto nodded, wiping his wet cheeks. Kakashi felt the urge to reach out again.

"W-Well, when Shikamaru woke up, they came and got us. I could hear Sasuke screaming through his... gag." Naruto shivered, shrinking back into his seat as though he were trying to make himself seem as small as possible. "They took us to a room, and they took off our blindfolds. They set Sasuke and I on the floor but tied Shikamaru to a chair with rope. He was so... scared. We were so scared. And it was cold. Why was it so cold?" Fresh tears spilled from Naruto's eyes, and he found himself unintentionally leaning towards Kakashi as he thought back to the war rather than his fake experience. The man scooted closer so he was in reach of Naruto, just in case.

"Naruto..." The Hokage shook his head, leaning back in his seat. He massaged his temples, taking in a deep breath. He didn't want to hear this. The man felt nauseous, and so, so mad. He wanted to destroy whoever'd done this to Naruto. Naruto, such a sweet boy who'd done nothing wrong, and who'd never gotten the chance to have a family. "What happened next?" Kakashi's fists clenched. He didn't want to know, but he had to. He was never going to let this go, and somebody needed to pay for... for this! 

"They t-took my clothes off, and Sasuke's. Not Shikamaru's though." Naruto's eyes became distant again. "They didn't do it to him. They left us on the ground a-and they went to him, and they pulled out kn-knives." Naruto's eyes went wide, and fresh tears spilled over. "They kept cuttin' his legs! Over and over! And then one of them would make their hands turn green and it would... heal the cuts or somethin'. But then they'd do it again, over and over again! Shikamaru was cryin' and screamin' but they wouldn't stop! They just kept laughin' a-and, and-"

Kakashi scooped Naruto into his arms, sliding his mask off his face so he could hug the boy better. He shushed Naruto's sobs soothingly, rubbing his back. One of his eyes was covered by his headband, and the other was squinted as tears flowed out of it. Naruto choked out a sob, hugging the man as hard as he could, as though he might disappear if he let go. The Hokage didn't chide Kakashi for taking off his mask, and for breaking and showing such intense emotion, because he was crying too.