This is chapter 4 of The Hidden Curse
This is my first attempt at fanfiction! Since it's sure to have lots and lots of flaws, suggestions are welcome. I only sort of have an idea where I'm going with this so things may get weird...I haven't come up with the chronology, but I'll be including Naruto characters. It's kinda AU but kinda not...if that makes sense...
I will be trying not to center on any one character as they are all awesome (^-^)b As for ratings I think T is an overestimate of where I will go, but better safe than sorry XD

Chapter List:
Chapter 1: The First Arrival (Again)
Chapter 2: Welcome to the Hidden Leaf
Chapter 3: Revealed
Chapter 4: (You are here)

Cast List:
Azure Fang - Hasu
Scarlet Blaze - Mutsuo
Crimson Fist - Senju Takeshi
Breeze Dancer - Namikaze Ayaka
Midnight Blade - Hatake Koji

Chapter 4: Dude Looks Like a Lady
It was amazing how much difference a few days could make. She was barely aware of her surroundings anymore. Everything hurt but still she continued healing automatically. Otherwise, she would have given up already. She didn't know what time it was anymore. She remembered that the big scarred man named Ibiki kept asking her questions she couldn't answer. Then Ino's father used some kind of jutsu on her. All she knew about that was that they hadn't found out anything they wanted. After a while she lost consciousness altogether, and when she woke up, she was somewhere else. There were no more questions.

Hasu opened her eyes, silently debating whether or not to attempt sitting up. Eventually, she decided to stay put, having lost the motivation to summon up that much energy. She stayed with her cheek pressed close against the cold floor, trying to adjust her eyes to the light. There seemed to be just one candle, but even that was more than she'd grown accustomed to. "Welcome," an unfamiliar voice said. Hasu was startled to realize she wasn't alone, and the shock was enough for her to force herself to turn over, ignoring the dull throbs from old cuts and bruises.


"W-who are you?" The words leaving her lips were in a cracked voice she barely recognized as her own. She made out deep red eyes and brown hair.

"Your new roommate," the other said, clearly in better condition and able to move around their shared cell with ease. "Name of Mutsuo.'

"O-oh. Hi, I'm-" Hasu broke off into a coughing fit before she could finish introducing herself.

"C'mon, eat some dinner. I haven't taken your portion yet." The voice sounded amused and Hasu felt herself being propped up on someone's shoulder. Hasu at the food and drink Mutsuo fed her slowly, since she was still feeling queasy. Even if she had to be in a cell, though, she was glad that her cellmate seemed so nice; Mutsuo reminded Hasu just a little bit of Ayaka, down to the hairstyle. Hasu began relaxing, slowly resting her cheek against the other person. It was because of this relative proximity that a new revelation swept over her, which changed the situation altogether.

Flat.

Chest.

"ACK!" The girl suddenly screeched in alarm, falling out of Mutsuo's arms. He also moved back, startled by her sudden movements. "Y-you're a guy!"

Even in the dim light she could see the boy was reddening. "Y-yeah, what did you think? Geez...idiot!"

"But....but why did I get put with a guyyy!" Aching and covered with sores or not, Hasu was plenty well enough to feel alarmed at suddenly having a male as her "roommate."

Mutsuo didn't respond immediately, and Hasu glanced over to see him pulling his hair back from his face and frowning into the bowl of water. "Uh...Hello?"

"Either a mistake or one of those Anbu having a joke," Hasu heard Mutsuo grumble under his breath.

"Hey wait a sec...you must have realized I was a girl," the girl said, narrowing her eyes in su*ion and edging away a little.

"Must I?" Mutsuo asked with a malicious smile. "You're pretty flat, too."

Hasu gasped in both indignation and embarrassment, and for a moment fell silent altogether as she withdrew to the opposite corner. Finally, she spoke again, more curious than she was offended. "So why are you here? Are you...dangerous?"

"Eh? Oh...yeah...you could say I'm..." Mutsuo grinned. "...dangerously charming."

Hasu could feel her eye twitching. "Mhm. So you annoyed people that much they had to lock you up?"

"Well, excuse you," the boy huffed. "Also, this isn't even a cell for dangerous people. I mean, we're sealed in," he said, gesturing towards the seals lining the cell bars, "but this isn't a cell for criminals." The girl gave a breath of relief. Looking around, she could see that, in the realm of cells, this was pretty spacious. There were actually beds. Evidently, she had either fallen off hers or just never made it on in the first place. Then that meant that she hadn't done anything wrong...so she could leave soon, right?

"I'm from Kusagakure," Mutsuo went on, "I guess I'm what you could call...a hostage. A lot of boring history. Third Shinobi War, got run over by Iwagakure for a while. Then the creepy snake man setting up camp somewhere for a while. And most recently rumors of the fancy-dress squad activity there. Yeah, home's a mess. So you could say I'm here for my own protection, and you could say I'm here to keep my folks in line."
"Creepy snake man? Fancy-dress squad?" Hasu echoed, thoroughly confused.

"Orochimaru. Akatsuki. Geez, lady, have you been living under a rock or what?" Mutsuo asked, looking genuinely puzzled.

Neither name meant much to her. Except Orochimaru, she supposed, but that was only because of recent events. Maybe she could ask for more information on that guy later. She had a million things she wanted to find out about right now. "What do we do here, then?" Hasu asked, wanting to know how long she'd be stuck here.

"Not much," Mutsuo confessed. "We're sealed in here to protect us, but I've been out for walks quite a few times - under watch, though. You'll probably get the same." He regarded her curiously. "So why are you here?"

Hasu realized she hadn't introduced herself. "I'm Hasu and I'm...from Otogakure, I think," she said. "I lost my memory," she explained further, watching the boy's face to see if he, like many others, was skeptical of her story. If he was, however, he said nothing. "Honestly, I can't tell you a lot more...I just know it has something to do with that Orochimaru, and that they think I'm here to attack the village."
The boy chuckled. "I guess that plan went awry."

"I guess so," Hasu agreed with a reluctant smile. The way she was now, if she was part of any plot she wouldn't remember at all.

"So you're probably here to keep Orochimaru from taking you back. That's good for you. He's not fun to his test subjects, you know," Mutsuo mused aloud, and now his thoughts followed that tangent. "Heh. I don't suppose you're lucky enough to be a curse mark survivor, are you?"

The girl's eyes lit up. "I do have one, actually." Could it be that this was a good thing?

"Yeah, we'll have to get out of here so you can show me what you can do sometime," the boy said, seeming equally excited. Juinjutsu was one of Mutsuo's interests, and as it was, he was just barely considerate enough not to ask his new acquaintance to show the seal to him. "Tomorrow Kurenai-sensei should be taking me out so I'll ask if you can come along," he suggested.

Hasu was elated at the possibility. To go so quickly from being almost lifeless to having a promise of getting outside again was enough to make her head spin. "I'd love that!"

She barely finished speaking when an Anbu appeared, startling her. Her first instinct was towards self-defense, but she saw that there was no need. The masked figure merely said, "Time for bed, kiddos. Lights out, under the covers."

Mutsuo grumbled as he tossed himself under his sheets, which made Hasu smile as she slowly and painfully dragged herself onto her own mattress. Even if it wasn't pleasant here, it was nice to see someone who reminded her of the friends she left outside. Hasu was aware of the dishes being removed from the cell, and within minutes she slipped into a blissful sleep.

This post was last edited by ISeeYou at 2017-4-20 14:30