Return Of The Madness

Chapter 13

Sunlight warmed Yuma's face, gently waking her  as she yawned softly. She could hear deep, calm breathing, she noted as her eyes fluttered, squinting at the light. She waited for her eyes to adjust before looking around.

Yuma was expecting to see Kakashi or Shikamaru, or Naruto and Sakura- who were both quick to express their bond and what adventures they'd had together, so Yuma was usually happy to see them.

What she was not expecting was the covered scalp of a large, dark man slumped into a hospital seat that seemed too small for his imposing stature. His eyes were shut, underlined in dark shadows. The scars on his face rippled, and his nose twitched as he yawned, stretching as he woke. His hand went to his neck, rubbing it as he grimaced in discomfort. His dark eyes cracked open, immediately finding the gobsmacked teen, and widened in surprise.

His surprise only doubled when she yelped in surprise and jolted away from him. As a result, she toppled off the hospital bed she'd recently awoken in, and found herself on the cold tile floor.

"O-Oi!" Ibiki grunted, jumping to his feet when she took her spill. He knew she would react differently, he'd been told about her warped memories, but it still caught him off guard as she peaked over the bed at him, eyes narrowed and distrustful with a hint of fear.

"Stay back," she warned, her voice holding a slight tremor and his brow rose slightly.

"Okay, alright, just calm down," he sighed, sitting back down as she appeared to be physically fine. "I'm not here to hurt you."

"Then why are you here?" She demanded, somewhat coldly, as she used the bed to pull herself to her feet. She knew that some of her memories had been altered, and now she accepted it. But that didn't necessarily mean she could trust just anyone. She had to be careful. She wasn't sure why Tachi would mess with her mind, but he wouldn't do it if not for her own good.

Right?

The morose thought made her frown further, something Ibiki picked up on instantly, but rather than asked her about it, he decided to answer her question.

"To check on you," he muttered, his deep voice oddly soft, jolting Yuma from her thoughts as she looked him over suspiciously.

"Why?" She asked again. "What are you to me, Ibiki Morino? Why should I trust you?"

Images of him inflicting horrible torture on her tore through her mind, followed closely by fond memories between the two in an ongoing game of tag. She didn't know which to believe, but could she trust his words?

She watched as his stern gaze softened, and he gazed at her with an affectionate expression she most definitely was not expecting.

"We were partners," he informed softly, smiling ever so slightly. He saw her head tilt curiously, and gestured to the bed for her to sit. She hesitated, but eventually did so, watching him curiously and cautiously.

"The demon taking residence in your body, as you lived in the village, began to cause you physical pain as you killed less and less," he began, and Yuma's brows furrowed. Aku-chan wouldn't hurt her... would he? The demon had been strangely silent since she'd been brought Konaha, and hadn't responded to her. "So the third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, made you my apprentice at interrogation and torture. Needless to say, you excelled. We'd rarely ever received information faster than when you were the one interrogating, and at the same time the demon's bloodlust was sated regularly. Overtime, you became the one I used as an example to the rookies. You and I worked together every other day. You became my unofficial partner..."

That name again, Sarutobi Hiruzen. She'd heard it a number of times since her arrival. Her head pounded whenever she tried to remember him, but she always recalled a sense of warmth associated with the name, immediately tailed by sadness. She'd been close to him, and something had happened to him.

As she was deep in thought, Ibiki noticed her troubled expression, and her nails digging into her palm. Her nails were long, much longer than the last time he'd seen her, though to be fair, that was a couple of years back. The long nails broke her skin, and crimson bubbled up around them, but she didn't seem to notice.

"Easy," he muttered, gently taking her hand and forcing it open, holding tight when she jerked. He flipped it over, making sure to keep a careful, secure grip as he examined the damage. He grimaced as blood rose from the puncture wounds. "As reckless as ever," he sighed, lips twitching as he fought off a fond smile.

His calloused hand held fast, but there was no aggression as he pulled a roll of bandages from the pouch on his thigh and set to work carefully wrapping her palm.

Yuma stared at him, and strangely enough, her eyes stung. As he tended to her hand, the good memories began to overpower the bad, becoming sharper, becoming brighter, bringing warmth to her chest.

She missed her friends in the Akatsuki, but the longer she stayed here, in Konaha, the clearer things became.

She didn't want to believe it, but now it was almost undeniable. The Akatsuki had taken her, had twisted and warped her memories, had trained her to be a weapon of mass destruction- or at least, more so than before. She knew she should be angry, should hate them for it, but she couldn't bring herself to.

All the time she'd spent with them, were real, she knew it. Despite their initial intentions, they were all her friends.

But now she was back in Konaha, memories returning. Her heart hurt, knowing she would need to eventually choose between this village and the Akatsuki- they would undoubtedly send for her.

"Ibiki..." She muttered softly, surprised to hear the waver in her own voice.

"Hm?" The dark man hummed, glancing at her as he tied off the bandages. He was startled to see harsh red carving lines down her face. She was a lot more fragile than before- but that was to be expected when everything she knew was being torn apart, put back together, and rearranged again. It would be a while before she could be the Yuma they remembered, and even then, she wouldn't be the exact same, but they were all more than willing to wait.

"When..." She swallowed, meeting his eyes. "When can we work together... again...?"

He sighed, taking a handkerchief from his pocket and wiping away the unique tears before ruffling her hair.

"Hopefully soon, kiddo," he said. "But for now, let's just worry about getting you out of this damn hospital, huh?" He smirked, and she spared the slightest of smiles back.