Sasuke made an attempt to move his arm, only discovering a searing pain shooting through his muscles, entangling a sense of strain on his chakra network as well. His body was still weakened by the effects of Itachi’s Tsukuyomi despite being unofficially released from the hospital after healing was induced by the Fifth.
He didn’t return after his fight with Naruto on the roof or spoken to either of his teammates. Instead he avoided them due to the intense frustration and confusion gnawing at him lately. Forgetting to listen to his sensei’s continues warnings of wandering too far from the village walls, allowed ample room for a sudden ambush.
The individual who took opportunity to strike was a member of the Akatsuki, one with blond hair and utilized bombs in the form of clay. The Uchiha only lasted a few rounds before depleting his energy and overusing his chidori in an effort to subdue damage. It resulted in a futile, useless endeavor as he was defeated and captured.
He overheard the man speaking to another, mentioning he was to be used to lure out the Nine Tailed Jinchuuriki. Although Sasuke wasn’t sure what that meant or entailed, he knew it rounded back to Naruto since he was his brother’s target a few months ago. This certainly wasn’t the way he intended to face Itachi again, not chained up and held prisoner for a means to an end. For someone else’s unknown purpose. His current situation gave no leeway to movement, let along considering revenge as an actual possibility. His quick loss at Tanzaku Town was enough to provide the answer he knew all along. He was weak. But those weaknesses were stabilizing for some time, but now they appeared to be an anchor dragging him down.
“I don’t know. Keeping him alive seems kind of pointless,” Deidara said, walking into the small room. His disdain for the sharingan purely propelled his motives. The assignment was an easy task for any of them, but he was closest to the Hidden Leaf at the time. “But that’s if it were up to me, hm.”
Kisame walked alongside the other. “Leader doesn’t seem to care about your opinion. You were just sent to retrieve him. To think we’d go through all the trouble all because he has a connection to our actual objective.”
“Waste of time,” he uttered. “Blowing him up would have been a lot more fun. On the plus side, I got a chance to see how strong Itachi’s little brother is and I have to say, I’m rather disappointed.”
Sasuke leveled his glare at the other who was aiming to provoke, but the thirteen year old wasn’t in the mood. “Playing up your victory doesn’t remove the fact that hardly won in the first place.”
“Yet you’re the one in chains,” he shot back, taking a step closer.
Kisame’s sword landed between them. “And here I thought our order were clear. We’re not supposed to kill him. Itachi is going to keep an eye on him once he gets here. Let’s not do more damage than necessary.”
A breath escaped him, stinging his lungs in the process. Seeing his brother again, after all the strife stirred with their last reunion was numbing. A mixture of anger and dread formed at the thought. Having to witness the massacre again was torture all in itself, reducing him into feeling helpless and further drawn into his faults.
He could still feel the blood running down the side of his head, the clenching pain that indicated at least one broken rib, and the exhaustion pinning his strength down, but nothing was more painful then knowing he’d have to face Itachi again.
(Closed starter for ashes-of-despair)