A Sentence to be Carried Out #1, take II

Kasumi sat with her back resting against the wall, on the temporary bed that was provided to her during her stay in Kiri's government complex.  It wasn't exactly a jail cell, though her quarters weren't much better.  She given every amenity the young teen required, but was confined to her room.  The only time she was allowed to leave was when her ninja escorts escorted her to the near by quarry where she was tasked to chisel out stone to be used for future building projects.  It was apart of the young Hyuuga's sentence, and while it was hard labor, Kasumi enjoyed being outside - if only to have a change in scenery and have a breath of freash air.  But today was not one of those days - today Kasumi was stuck indoors.  Her breakfast sat upon the small table which stood in the middle of the room.  Scattered next to her unfinished meal were several drawings of aquatic wildlife she remembered when she was shipwrecked on the island.  They were crudely drawn as Kasumi did not have any reference pictures to look at.  The inspiration was there, but every picture she drew felt a little off.

Now what to do?  She wondered as she sat on the bed.

It had been days since she was brought before the Yamanaka clan.  It was the most excitement she had in quite a while.  The Kage had assigned a ninja who lived there to examine the young teen, but when Kasumi arrived, that ninja had fallen ill.  Kasumi was beginning to wonder if it was all just a rouse to begin with – mental game to screw with the teen's head.  The thought wriggled inside her like a worm as she frowned thinking about it.  It made the tips of her fingers tingle, as if she were molding chakra, but every time she looked down, Kasumi could not see anything out of the ordinary.  This was also troublesome, but it was the least of Kasumi's problems.  Suddenly a knock came from the thick, iron door which sealed the Hyuuga inside.  It rang in ears for a moment.  It was a knock which could only mean one thing.  Kasumi's escorts were here.  

”Oi, its time to go,” one of them barked.  ”It seems our lord Kage has found you a replacement examiner.”

”I'll be right there!” Kasumi said excitedly.  

Kasumi was very excited for this news.  She was so eager to leave her chambers, that she could no longer contain herself.  Last time she able to go for a walk outside with her escorts.  She was happy to walk around the city streets again, even if the public saw her face.  She no longer cared.  The thick iron door's seal was broken and the door left ajar by the time the Hyuuga emerged.  Standing in front of her were two familiar faces – the two nins who were her handlers - the two nins who'd catch her in an instant should she try to escape.

”Where are we off to this time?  Not the quarry, correct?”  Kasumi asked her chaperones, there was a twinkle in her eye.

The two kiri chunins looked at each other for a moment and sighed, ”We aren't going outside this time, Miss.  We're headed to the basement.”

Oh... Kasumi mumbled in a disappointed tone, ”Well, its not like I have a choice in the matter.  I will comply to our Kage's demands.”

One of the nins lead the trio, while the other brought up the rear and made sure the teen wasn't going to run.  Kasumi had no desire to do so, however, all she wanted was to be able to go home and see her parents once more.  She was lead down several winding hallways before going down a few flights of stairs.  The trio walked down even more hallways while on the basement level.  It was like a labyrinth.  Finally the nins lead Kasumi to a lone door and motioned for her to go inside.  Once inside, Kasumi heard the door shut behind her and did not hear her escort leave.  They were stationed just outside.  The windowless room had but a single hanging lamp which shed its light upon a table and a set of two chairs.  Kasumi took a seat and waited for her examiner.

(WC = 708)

Resting in his private chambers, scyxion was preparing to receive a briefing on his next assignment on what to do. Wearing his black and grey hooded mantle, he pulled it over his face as he draped it around his body, covering his anbu armor. He was currently off duty from shadowing the Mizukage and was currently assigned to another task that required his expertise. Getting up, he had a bit of stretch before walking towards the door that led out into the village. Taking a leisurely walk through the village, he wasted no time in walking towards the Kage's estate in order to find out what the current briefing will be. It only took a few moments for him to make it to his destination as he took his jobs very seriously. As he walked into the Kage's estate, he noticed the secretary was typing away a device he didn't have knowledge of. It was a device called a computer and they were typing furiously before they noticed scyxion walk into the room. "Good Afternoon Anbu, I'll be briefing you on your assignment today. It seems there's a matter the Mizukage wants you to take on personally," the secretary had told the anbu.

Continuing on with the briefing, the secretary had continued, "We are currently keeping a teenage girl here who claims they were a part of a village and had been gone for a few years. They've recently come back but we aren't sure we can completely trust them just yet. The Mizukage says they seem fine but something about their story doesn't fully check out to him. He wants you to escort this girl to the intelligence agency to get everything sorted out. Don't worry, we aren't asking you to torture this girl, seeing as you are an expert at that sort of thing, she's willing to cooperate as she came back on her own."  The somber anbu nodded as he listened knowing what he must do. He was going to assist the agency in any way he could but he wasn't to bring unnecessary harm to the child. The secretary continued, "she is to examined by the agency and when you are done, you are to escort her back to her chambers here so the Mizukage can talk to her one more time if her story does not add up, understand?" Giving a slow nod, scyxion got the gist of it. 

With that, scyxion began to head into basement where he heard the person in question. Walking through a narrow corridor, he made it to a little dead end at the end. Of course it wasn't a simple dead end but a secret passage that helped him navigate the premise a lot easier than non-authorized people. He was an anbu closely tied to the current Mizukage and it was imperative that he can be anywhere he needed to be as long as he was on the estate grounds to do so. This form of travel wasn't only limited to the estate but all around the main village. Making his way through the simplified path, scyxion made it to the entrance of the room where the two chuunin had been keeping the girl. Without a word and a snap of his finger, scyxion had dismissed the two chuunin, signaling them that he'd take it from here. Approaching the door, the anbu placed a masked over his face for added security since the hooded only hid his eyes and nose from the view of the world. Knocking, scyxion made sure to check to see if the person in question was actually inside before stepping in.

Almost as quickly a he finished knocking, scyxion had stepped into room to beckon the girl towards him. "Listen up, I'm the examiner that'll aid in conducting the tests. We won't do it here though, follow me," scyxion said in a somber tone. He wasn't exactly a social butterfly so expressing himself was quite difficult unless he was speaking to Xijion. Almost as quickly as he came, he had turned to the door and began to walk out not waiting for a response from the girl only for her to obey.

W.C: 697

It felt like an entire week passed as she waited for her examiner to arrive.  Kasumi drummed the table with her fingers with an outstretched hand.  This only sought to exaggerate the silly clothing she was instructed to wear.  Understandably they were neutral clothing meant to prevent the wearer from receiving any advantages in a combative scenario and reminded Kasumi of pajamas.  They must have been made for a boy as they did not flatter her in any way.  The lamp light which hung above the young Hyuuga was dimly lit and offered an eerie atmosphere to set the stage.

Well the Kage couldn't have picked a more intimidating location, I'll give him that... Kasumi thought as she waited.  Hopefully this won't take too long.

Kasumi stared at the door and wondered just who they would sent for her.  She tried to imagine someone but the person quickly morphed into her two escorts or the Mizukage himself.  She couldn't help but grin remembering the Kage's stern appearance, but Kasumi saw knew the man wasn't completely cold.  His voice was calm when he spoke, and perhaps, had a hint of compassion.  Kasumi wished to do her best to show the Kage he had nothing to fear – that she wanted to be an asset and become the kunoichi she knew she could be.  But her easygoing nature soon changed when a loud knock on the door snapped her back into reality.

”Y-yes, I'm here!” Kasumi said, stammering to her feet; her chair screeched across the stone floor as she stood to attention.

Her heart dropped when she felt the gaze from the ANBU standing in doorway.  She had always enjoyed the designs of the masks they wore and wished to wear one herself when she was older – once she was skilled in the ninja arts, that was.  But being the focus of this man standing in front of her, Kasumi felt her face tingle.  She felt the tips of her toes curl like one would do if they were leaning over a high-up ledge.  

So this is just a waiting room of sorts.  The real examination will be conducted elsewhere, Kasumi thought as the man spoke, to which the teen nodded in compliance.

”L-lead the way, sir.  I will follow,” Kasumi said shyly.

Kasumi clenched her fits and gulped down her nerves as she stepped forward - it was finally time.

(WC = 393)

Leading the young girl through the exit of the room they were in, scyxion had opted to take the route she had previously been escorted through as he couldn't exactly reveal the nature of the hidden pathways to the girl since she didn't have the proper clearance, among other things. Taking the longer route, scyxion quietly wondered if all the twists and turns were truly worth being here if most people nowadays have ways of navigating through most mazes with their eyes closed. Either way, that wasn't his problem as all he had to do was obey. Finally making it back to the lobby of the estate, scyxion nodded to the secretary once more before leading the young girl out of the estate and eventually, off of the property. Looking around, he planned the best course for navigation. He figured just taking a train would get him closest to his destination and all things considered, would be easier to keep the girl in check should anything go wrong. Walking down a road, scyxion got onto a train station with the girl, should she had kept following him obediently. Approaching the teller, he had pulled out a special pass that allowed him to board the train without paying like a normal citizen since he was on official duty.

The teller nodded before buzzing in both scyxion and the girl so they could formally wait in front of the train station. It only took a few moments before a train pulled up, blowing a whistle signaling customers to get aboard the train. Pushing her to get on first, scyxion stepped in afterwards and decided to right in front of the doorway where he had just entered from. Under normal circumstances, he could have just had a private, horse drawn vehicle procured and ready to go at a moment's notice but the words of Xijion had rung in his head about being unapproachable and scary all the time to the point where he frightens children. This bothered him deep down though he had passed it off as him brushing it off at that time. Instead, since he decided this was a young girl, she could at least have a nice scenic route to where she could look at all the sights while they travel to the place to conduct the tests. He was only a monitor so he doubted it would be anything that would involve severe pain although he wasn't one hundred percent sure it would be painless.

They were skilled in getting information out one way or the other but they weren't as skilled as, say, the Yamanaka clan members who specialize in getting into the minds of their victims. He continued to be lost in thought until the train was at its final destination and it was time for him and the girl to get out of the train and continue on with their journey. It was still quite a ways to get there as the agency wasn't exactly accessible by only a short walk. They would have to walk some distance before they managed to see the agency that doubles into a prison as well. After a long walk, both of them had made it to the building where they were to get down to business. 

W.C: 547

The hooded and masked figure lead her back through the twisting and winding passages that made up the complex's basement, and soon enough, Kasumi found herself back on the first level.  This puzzled her; the fear, which surged though her being, was replaced with uncertainty.  It was soon discovered that the examination was not to be held in the place she had imagined.  The two walked at a lackadaisical pace though the streets of Kiri.  Kasumi looked around to see if her chunin escorts were following them, but they weren't anywhere to be seen.  Either they were skilled in the arts of stealth, as their profession demanded, or they weren't there to begin with.  Eventually the duo reached their destination, but when Kasumi looked up, she realized she was standing at Kiri's train station.

Wait, so we're leaving Kirigakure for this examination?  Kasumi wondered as she leaned to one side.  I wonder why this is necessary?  What was wrong with the basement room?

There were too many questions and the young Hyuuga dared not ask any questions.  Instead, she remained silent and observed.  The answers she sought would reveal themselves soon enough, and hopefully, after the masked man's investigation, there would be zero doubt that Kasumi was telling the truth.  She wanted to see her parents again, she wanted to be allowed to wear her headband again, and she wanted the Kage's approval – to this end, she climbed aboard the train.  That and because there was a large hand which prodded the girl to get on board.  Kasumi awkwardly sat on one of the benches in their booth.  The above rack remained empty for the teen as she only possessed the simple clothes she wore, though even her clothing wasn't really hers.  Soon enough, she heard the whistle blow for a second time and felt a sudden jolt as the train cars lurched forward.  Puffs of smoke began to billow as people waved their goodbyes.  

The train picked up speed as they traveled along the tracks.  Soon the streets of Kiri were replaced with the rolling countryside.  Kasumi massaged her sore palms and wondered if this was the same line that traveled passed the quarry she was assigned to.  Watching the trains go by was a welcoming break in scenery as she mined out workable blocks of stone.  They reminded her of herself -  having a clear destination, but bound to route they followed.  Kasumi leaned back in her seat and watched the masked man for a moment.  She could only dared to catch a glance as she wondered what kind of man her examiner was.  Eventually they reached their stop and got off.  But their journey wasn't over, yet.

Their destination did not greet them at the station as they continued on foot, and while the teen was getting stronger quarrying out blocks, she was not used to hiking this far.  But Kasumi kept up with the masked ANBU, albeit a little winded.  Eventually a building loomed in front of them.  It was a massive structure, to be sure, one that seemed easily defensible.  But as Kasumi studied the layout from outside, it did not seem like the building was meant to keep attackers at bay.

This building is to keep people inside.  This is a prison!  Kasumi thought with a frown.  Alright, relax.  If this were permanent, I would have been escorted in chains.  This is only temporary.  I'll be released before I know it.

Kasumi swallowed her fears once again as she followed the hooded and masked man down the sidewalk which lead into the main gate, and mentally prepared for what she might find inside...

(WC = 603)

Looking at the building in front of them, scyxion blew a huff about wondering why this entire new facility was needed in the first place. He preferred a small secluded building to conduct his business of interrogation but this one was out of his hands entirely. He was to mainly assist but not conduct the tests himself as the girl was willing to participate. Well, that was quite boring though he didn't derive any sick pleasures from it but he'd just prefer to be more involved with the task at hand other than being a mere escort. Well, no use complaining about it internally as he decided to approach a large, steel gate in front of them. There was a booth to the right side of the gate and scyxion walked over to state his business. There was a Jounin inside the booth that was checking the clearance and permissions of the anbu before giving a nod and signaling for the large steel gate to be opened. The loud gates had begun to separate with a loud cranking sound, large enough for humans to walk through unhindered. Walking through, scyxion ushered the girl through as well, peering around the large courtyard of the newly built prison.

Walking along the pathway leading to the main building, a rather young looking chuunin had arrived, offering to be a guide since it was clearly the anbu's first time being at the penitentiary and agency. He'll admit, he found it odd that important and top secrets would be housed together with dangerous criminals and inmates. Especially this far away from the main village. Quickly, he brushed aside those thoughts and feelings as he had no business questioning the current Mizukage in the first place He was bred and trained to obey without question and so he shall. The chuunin greeted themselves and told both the Anbu and the girl to follow him as he would lead them through the building so they could begin to conduct their business. Reluctantly, scyxion had followed the chuunin into the main building. At first they went through a lobby, which led to an office, which led through some very long corridors. Eventually, they were led to a room that felt like a medical examination chamber. It had the standard set like a normal hospital room but with a few extra security measures such as barred windows, a holding cell and a strange machine that was attached to a helmet. It also had walls that felt similar to being inside a bunker.

Admittedly, he's never seen that contraption before but he was intrigued to learn what functions it was capable of. The chuunin had then become hesitant, stammering out words towards the anbu as if he was nervous. He had told scyxion that he would have to stand outside of the room in front of the door. He didn't understand why he had to do this or why the chuunin was nervous but he didn't really care too much. Walking outside the room, scyxion had closed the door and waited for whatever events will unfold. After the anbu had left, the chuunin had started to breathe normally before turning to the girl. "Hello miss, I will be one of your examiners today. Alright, with that out of the way, let's get down to business." The chuunin then walked across the room and began to search for something. A few moments later, they had pulled out a medical gown and brought it over to the girl. "I will need you to change out of your clothes and into this gown in order to begin an X-ray examination. Not only is it a check for your mental state, we also have to make sure your body isn't rigged for harmful effects to take place such as hidden weapons activating or you being a sleeper agent of some kind. I will leave the gown with you and step outside as well with the uh, frightening looking man." 

With that, the young chuunin nodded their head and walked over towards the door scyxion had stepped out of off into the hallway in order for the girl to change into the gown in peace.

W.C: 700

”Um, sir?  Y-you're not imprisoning me, are you?  H-has the Mizukage changed his mind?”  Kasumi asked the masked man, but her timid questions fell on deaf ears.  

The masked man did not pause for her questions so Kasumi fell silent once more.  One way or another, the teen's questions were going to be answered.  They continued to walk until they stood in front of a steel gate.  To the side stood a booth in which a Jounin with a Mist headband could be seen on the nin's forehead.  The masked man walked over and talked to the him.  After a moment the ninja nodded and the gate slowly swung open.  Kasumi observed the ninja for a time until the gate was fully open.

A booth job does not look very fulfilling in the slightest.  I hope the Kage assigns me to something more exciting, if I'm ever cleared that is,

Kasumi gave the Jounin a look of sympathy before she followed the masked man once more.  He lead her along a path which lead to the main building.  They weren't alone, however.  Another ninja, much younger than Kasumi's hooded escort, was patrolling the grounds as the duo walked up to him.  He offered them directions which the hooded man accepted.  It seemed it was his first time at the facility as well.  And now that she looked more carefully, Kasumi began to understand why that was.  The facility had just been built.  The floors were clean and did not show signs of aggressive cleaning.  The facility still had that “new building” smell when Kasumi breathed in.  The two followed the Chunin into a lobby and down a corridor which held several offices.  The hallways were long and reminded Kasumi of the Kage's estate.  They were eventually led into the room that was to be their destination.

Kasumi looked around with curiosity in her white eyes.  She stood in a room that looked like a hospital room.  The room was white and had bright overhead lights.  But what set this room apart from other hospital rooms was its added security measures.  The room also had a machine which could been taken out of a science fiction novel.  It had a helmet which was connected with several hoses.  

What sort of terrible experiments is this room designed for? Kasumi wondered bleakly as she gazed upon the holding cell and the barred windows.

Their Chuunin, who had been their guide, turned out to be one of her examiners as well.  He seemed to be nervous which did not help to calm Kasumi in the slightest.  Her mood did not change any when the young man gave her the medical gown.  She was already wearing clothes that did not belong to her, the gown only sought to remind her of this fact.  Kasumi stared into the Chuunin's eyes hesitantly as he handed her the gown.  It was the first time she'd gotten a good look at him since they arrived; perhaps it was because of the medical room's lighting.  He was shorter than her, but that was to be expected.  She was tall for her age, and she was finally starting to grow into her body.  Kasumi took the gown and waited for the nin to step out of the room before stripped down.  Once the gown was slipped over her head, the young Hyuuga crossed her arms and blushed slightly as she waited for the Chuunin to re-enter the room.

"I-I'm changed now.  You can come back in.  And, as you can see, I don't have any weapons tucked away.  I don't wish to be a bother or anything..." she said in an embarrassed tone.

(WC = 608)

After the chuunin had stepped outside for the time being, he nervously played with his thumbs as he stood next to scyxion, who had his arms folded. They had stood next to each other quietly, not addressing one another as one waited for the girl to finish changing into a gown and the other waited until it was his turn to continue on his specific part of the examination. After a few moments, the chuunin could hear the girl calling for him to come back into the room so they could begin their tests. Breathing a quick sigh of relief, the chuunin had nodded to scyxion before entering the room once more. When the chuunin arrived, he had noticed she had changed into the gown like he had asked, noting her embarrassed facial expression. He assured her that she wouldn’t have to be in the gown for too long as long as she cooperates quickly. Moving on, the chuunin quickly moved onto one side of the room where the X-ray machine and a bed was currently placed. He had instructed the girl to lay down on the bed with her arms to the side, as straight as she could so he could begin the process of checking for foreign entities. If the girl had done as instructed, the chuunin would power on the machine, making it perform a quiet, ‘wrrrrr’ sound. 

Angling the main part of the X-ray above the girl’s head, the chuunin slowly scanned it for any potential anomalies that may or may not be hidden within her body. Most of the time, people normally go the indirect route of hiding things using chakra or techniques but the agency can never be too sure since most criminals and even a few Kirigakure ninja like to conceal deadly weapons in available ‘orifices’. Blushing a little bit, the chuunin staved off thoughts like that for the time being so he could focus more on his task at hand. He was having indecent thoughts but he didn’t want the female below him to get the wrong idea and kept pace with the machine as he slowly dragged it over her arms and torso should nothing alert or alarm the chuunin from the head scanning. Glossing over the torso and arms, the chuunin made his way down to the woman’s legs to get accurate scans for any anomalies that might have taken place. When he was done with his examination, the chuunin had transferred his scans to a large monitor that had begun to slowly lower from out of the ceiling when he pushed a button on the machine after he had turned off the machine. 

As the monitor descended from the ceiling, the scans the chuunin recently took began to display on the monitor with statistics and vital charts appearing next to each one. The chuunin then walked over to the monitor before beginning his synopsis of what he found through his X-ray scans and tests. He had hoped he wouldn’t find  anything out of the ordinary would happen.

W.C: 508

Kasumi laid down on the examination table and waited for further instructions.  She inhaled deeply and exhaled a moment later.  She placed her arms down to her sides and tried to emulate the characteristics of a board as much as possible.  Moments later, the machine sprang to life and made a low humming sound.  Kasumi couldn't help but wonder if she felt the X-ray as it scanned her body.  Was it her nerves getting the best of her, or was the weird sensation actually real?  Regardless, she hoped the machine would be done soon.

Kasumi closed her eyes and imagined she was back Kirigakure.  She tried to remember what things were like before she stowed away aboard the search vessel and ultimately what drove her into this mess.  She tried to remember the other Genin whose team she was suppose to be apart of.  She was pretty sure one of them was from the Inuzuka clan and had a red and brown dog companion.  The other, she thought she remembered, carried a katana, but the more she tried to remember, the bigger the blank she drew for them.  This frustrated her, and suddenly Kasumi found herself back on the bed.  She then tried to focus on her mother and father.  She wanted to see them again more than ever.  But when she tried to remember their faces, they two were drawing blanks in her mind.  

What the hell?  Why can't I remember anyone right now? Kasumi wondered as she laid on the bed, the machine still hummed along.  Could this machine have something to do with it?  Maybe I should just quiet my mind...

Kasumi took another deep breath and remained as still as possible for the Chuunin's test.  Hopefully, if all went well, they'd release her on the same day.  But those types of thoughts were too far in the future to come to a definite conclusion to.  Kasumi laid in silence and was perfectly still for the remainder of the X-ray examination.  Moments later the teen heard the machine kick off.  Only the faint hum of the overhead lighting could be heard.   The girl wondered what the Chuunin was doing as he and the hooded man were being quiet.  She hoped that everything was going smoothly.

(WC=375)

Looking at the monitor, the chunin began to bring his right hand under his chin, stroking it as if he was deep in thought. After a few minutes, he walked over a white, sterile desk and began rummaging through it as he was looking for something. After a brief moment, he’d stop and fished out a clipboard with a blank piece of paper along with a pen. Walking back to the monitor, the chuunin began to jot down some details of the girl’s vital scans. There wasn’t anything interesting or out of the ordinary with her physical features but it never hurt to be cautious. “Now then, according to these scans, there’s nothing foriegn in your body or anything that would provoke cause for alarm. On the contrary you seem to be a healthy and growing girl, given how tall you are, heh heh. Ahem, anyway since there’s no problems here, I’ll have to give these scans a thorough look through before I can give any real further details. For now, just relax and sit tight, I’ll be back in twenty minutes so we can go through the other procedures. I will call your escort back in to be in here with you so you aren’t lonely.”

 The chuunin then shifted his eyes from left to right, left and then right once more. He then whispered in as quiet a tone as possible, “Between you and me, most anbu in the village give me the creeps but that guy outside feels like the worst.” He gave a faint smile and chuckled. The chuunin has been quite through a lot working here in this Agency prison and has seen war criminals to harden felons and in the back of his mind, he wondered why this young girl of all people was getting tested here of all places which honestly baffled him but this was the current Mizukae’s orders so he had no choice but to go align with it. He was just relieved at the nice change of pace without having to call chunin and jonin to come to his aid to hold down a ‘patient’ and get them sedated to finally have them answer questions against their will. He then gave a bow before walking towards the exit in order to continue his work. As he left the room, he informed scyxion that he was done with the X-ray examination and that he was allowed in for the time being. 

Giving a silent nod, scyxion watched as the chuunin walked away until he disappeared from view. He then turned to the door and decided to step inside casually. Looking at the girl in front of him, his facial had twisted into a face of confusion. He was aware the noncompliant  criminals needed to be stripped of most or all of their clothing but he was sure it wasn’ necessary for a compliant one to do so to this extreme. Giving a sigh, he shrugged and figured it was just a cautionary procedure and decided it would be best to inform the girl that she could put back on her regular attire. “...The X-rays are done, put your clothes back on....” With that remark, scyxion had once again stepped out of the room, folding his arms. When the chuunin came back, he decided he’d have some words with him but for now, it was best he not mention this little mishap outwardly. He didn’t want to embarrass the chuunin and he was also feeling quite flustered at how awkward the situation had become so quickly in a matter of a few moments.

W.C: 601