The moment the wood closed around him, he knew he was stuck. That didn't mean he didn't struggle. How dare they? How dare they attempt to keep him from his mate? They didn't have the right! Sasuke! He needed Sasuke!

The wood didn't yield. Instead, it seemed to tighten the more he struggled, leaving him less and less space until even his breathing was strained, but he didn't stop growling and sneering at the restraints.

More people came into view, and he hissed and growled at them as hard as he did towards the wood. None of them looked impressed by him. All of them were more focused on Sasuke and his injuries. He followed their gaze and slowly realised what he had done. Sasuke was seriously hurt. By him. Again. The edge of his anger was replaced by worry, but the betrayal didn't leave his mind. And it didn't diminish his struggle to get free. It amplified it. He needed to get to Sasuke, make sure he was okay.

The Scarecrow appeared looming over his mate and then disappeared with Sasuke, drawing out another fit of hissing, growling and struggling. Without warning the wood tightened around him again, cutting off his breath completely. A man with a bored-looking face appeared in front of him. He glared at the man but neither of them said anything. His glare should have sent the man to his knees, but instead, he only responded with bored eyes. In the way... This man was in the way. This man needed to die. Sasuke was... Sasuke was no longer here.

Something clicked in his mind. The change in him was instant. Fighting wouldn't result in anything. Not now. His anger subsided for the part of him he least liked. Emotionless. Cold and empty, but right now the most logical solution. There wasn't a need to waste energy here. He would get his chance soon enough. There wasn't a cell that could hold him or a seal that could contain him. So he stopped. He let the force of the wood choke him out. He let the world fade to black as he lost consciousness.

A familiar cold seeped into him when he woke again. The hard rough stone underneath him was painfully familiar too. He opened his eyes but didn't see much more than when they were closed. There were a few differences. More chains for example. Both his ankles and both his wrists. He was on his knees and kept upright by the chains on his wrists. The chains disappeared into the walls on either side of him so he couldn't move them any closer together. The band around his neck was attached to a chain running to the wall behind him. He didn't feel like he was closer to any of the walls, leading him to guess he was in the middle of the room.

The room was bigger than any he had been kept in before, but the stone felt the same. It smelled the same too. Dank and moist. He carefully drew in a breath through his nose before releasing it through his mouth. Ahh, it smelled like home...

He shifted his weight. His knees were hurting. They must be raw from the stone. It didn't seem he was wearing any clothing anymore, and the direct contact was harsh on the bare skin bearing his entire weight. The chains wouldn't yield and probably weren't long enough to allow him to rise to his full height. An attempt to rise to his feet confirmed just that. He sighed. This was a little more cumbersome than he had liked it. Ah, well. He had time if nothing else.

His breath felt laboured and he felt drained. A steady flow of energy was leaving him almost as fast as he was able to replenish it. The chains were draining him slowly.

Time passed and the same sense of boredom he had lived through for years crept back into him. It became senseless again, with only his heartbeat to indicate the passing of time. It shut him down, made him numb. At the same time, he was keener and his senses sharper. It was easy going back to this. Easier than he had expected even with the harsher restrictions and easier than he would ever like to admit. His mind didn't stop, though. His voices were getting louder and louder. All demanding to be heard by the others while the emotionless took control of the external. The turmoil grew louder and louder, yet it all seemed to lead to the same conclusion. A grin broke the emotionless face for a second when all of him agreed on what must be done. 

Sasuke didn't really know how much time had passed before he woke up again. His mind was groggy and his body heavy as he slowly registered he was in a hospital room. It took a few moments for the past events to come crashing down at him again. He shot up to a sitting position and regretted it immediately as his body reminded him of the damage done to it.

He sighed but remained seated despite his body's protests. The pain was like a punishment to himself. Everything was just so fucked up and all he wanted to do was scream in frustration.

It was dark outside. Probably close to midnight. His mind couldn't phantom what happened to Naruto, or what the wood was that had managed to stop and control him. It must have had something to do with the Shinobi channelling Chakra, but Sasuke hadn't recognised them.

Time passed by slowly, and he watched the sun slowly creep over the edge of the horizon, casting the world in light. He remembered Naruto telling him he didn't want to be locked away in darkness again, but he probably was right now. And that was Sasuke's fault.

A nurse came in, but he ignored her. She did some things, spoke to him in a soft and gentle voice, but when he stubbornly refused to recognise her presence she left. Not long after the door opened again, revealing both Hokage and Morino. Still, Sasuke's gaze was focussed outside and he did little to show he acknowledged their presence.

"Sasuke, I need you to tell us what happened." Kakashi-sama said. His tone wasn't rude, but it also wasn't kind. It was demanding. He wanted an answer and a good one at that.

Sasuke sighed. The story as it had gone didn't really seem to convey the gravity of it all and right now he was doubting himself in whether or not he had acted in the right way. He knew he had, but his heart was still torn and Sasuke didn't want to deepen his betrayal to Naruto.

The staring eyes directed at him were burning on his skin, but still, he remained quiet. Frustration was added to the room as patience wore thin. "Then I guess we'll have to ask Yamanaka-san." Kakashi-sama said and turned to leave.

Sarutobi-sama lingered, still looking at Sasuke. After a few moments, he too turned around to leave.

"I want to see him." Sasuke said softly, in almost a whisper. Sarutobi-sama stopped and looked back. Sasuke hadn't moved. He was still staring at his hands, shoulders stiff.

"Then you'll need to talk." Sarutobi-sama answered. Sasuke just gave a short nod as an answer and Sarutobi-sama left the room after that. A lot of tension left the room with him, and Sasuke suddenly felt overwhelmed by the need to sleep. It was easy to sink back into sleep, but it was anything but restful. As soon as his eyes closed, dreams twisted into nightmares faster than he could process it, casting him back into the real world without mercy. The ache in his body flared at the sudden movement and he let himself fall back in the bed defeated. It seemed he would be getting no sleep for a while.

There wasn't much he could do now. The idea of Naruto locked back in the darkness he hated so much made Sasuke sick to his stomach and intensified his guilt. His injuries, however, were a testimony as to why he had done what he did. It didn't make it any easier, just a little more bearable.

Over the next two days he slowly relayed his story, careful about everything he told them and how he told them. They kept prodding and digging until they were satisfied, and in the meantime Sasuke felt recovered enough to walk around again. That evening they went to the Department.

Both Hokage, Sasuke and Morino made their way through the Department. The darkness pressed down on Sasuke like lead. Every step felt heavy and strained as he walked closer to the source of his guilt. He didn't want to see Naruto like this, but he also couldn't stay away. 

Naruto heard them approach long before they would expect him to be aware of it. The dull drone of footsteps echoing through the corridor outside of his cell. He could pinpoint the exact moment they changed their attitude as they approached. Suddenly the voices that spoke clearly became hushed and footsteps became more calculated. They were preparing for anything. They would not find what they expected.

Light crept into the room as the door swung open, revealing the familiar silhouettes of the honoured Lord Third and the merciless Morino Ibiki. Other, less important characters, stayed in the shadows of the hallway. ANBU who were unfamiliar to him. He sensed Sasuke and Kakashi in the hallway as well, but discarded them until they would come in.

He held his head hanging down. Not that he was pretending to still be unconscious or sleeping. He just didn't raise his head because there was no need to. The men observing him remained silent for a while, but eventually, it was the Hokage who spoke first. "What have you done?" He asked, without hiding any of his emotions. Disappointment and sadness. Maybe a little fear as well. Emotions were always hard to read.

He didn't respond. They still hadn't given him any reason to respond to anything, so he didn't.

The Hokage stepped close, much to the shock of the people who were guarding him. The ANBU were immediately on full alert, and even Morino stepped forward like he was planning to intervene, but the Hokage waved them off.

"Naruto..." He said. Again his only response was a silence dragging on. The Hokage sighed. "Sasuke is here to see you." He added. He watched to see if Naruto would react, but there wasn't even a twitch, so he turned around and walked out of the room. Morino stayed in the room, settling himself into a corner and watching Naruto like he was afraid the boy would suddenly explode on him. Which was of course a real possibility.

When Sasuke stepped into the room he froze at what he saw. He knew Naruto would be restrained, but he couldn't help but feel this was overkill. Another pang of guilt ran through him. After all, he was the cause of Naruto being restrained in the dark once more.

Morino shifted in the corner, drawing Sasuke's attention. They shared a tormented look over what had become of Naruto and found that they both were torn on the current state of things. Sasuke gave Morino a small nod which Morino returned. Since Morino wasn't allowed to leave the prisoner unattended while there were visitors he did the next best thing and averted his gaze as much he could.

Sasuke looked back at Naruto and his heart skipped a beat. Naruto had opened his eyes and they were transfixed on him. He hadn't moved otherwise, but his eyes glinted in the dim light of the torches and almost reflected the light back.

Sasuke stepped closer, leaving a good step between him and Naruto and crouched down so they could be eye to eye. The look in Naruto's eyes made him nervous. Naruto watched him unwavering and without blinking. After a moment the emotionless mask dropped from Naruto's face, replaced by raw pain. He dropped his gaze and closed his eyes, letting tears escape.

Sasuke almost stumbled back at that. If he thought his guilt was bad before, it was nothing compared to what he felt right now. Forgetting himself, he dropped to his knees and reached out to gently hold Naruto's face. He muttered quiet whispers begging for Naruto not to show him that face. It cut too deep. It hurt too much. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry..." He whispered as he leaned closer, pressing his forehead against Naruto's.

"I know." Naruto answered back. His voice was surprisingly calm and contained. "Sasuke, it's dark here. I don't like this darkness."

Sasuke nodded. "I know. It wasn't supposed to be like this."

Naruto only answered with an agreeable sound, pressing his head gently against Sasuke's. This felt really good to Naruto, the proximity. Almost good enough to make him forget that it was Sasuke who put him here again. Almost.

"Kiss me." Naruto said simply. There wasn't any real emotion in his voice, but he kept his voice close to a whisper. Sasuke did as he asked just like that. He kissed Naruto like this was going to be the last time they were going to see each other and Naruto kissed back in the same way. He strained against the chains in an attempt to get closer, but it didn't do anything. The chains were taut and unyielding.

Sasuke clung his hands in Naruto's hair, holding on with all he had just to show Naruto how much he still cared for him. Why was his mind so messed up? Every time Naruto showed any kind of sanity, Sasuke felt like he crumbled and couldn't see a life without Naruto, but every time Naruto showed his other side, Sasuke became more and more fearful for his life and that of others. Why did he need to choose? More importantly, why didn't he choose to stay by Naruto's side? Wouldn't it have been easy? This regret, this guilt was tearing him apart slowly and it hurt.

Backing up from the kiss, they looked each other dead in the eyes. For a second, Sasuke froze and then realized it was too late. The world morphed around him and he fell into a Genjutsu. Despite knowing he was, there was little he could do. It happened so fast he didn't have the time to put up any defences. The horror scene his brother had made him live through came back to life at that moment. The whole event, with added details that only made it more shocking and real, played through his mind, leaving him vulnerable and broken.

To make it worse, it was like he saw everything through Itachi's eyes. It felt so real as he stained his own hands with the blood of his family, friends and clan without him being able to do anything about it. Every time he focussed on blood spatters on the walls or the ground, it seemed to form the word 'traitor' and every face he saw was contorted in anguish. As he entered his parents' house to witness their deaths all over again, a clear laugh rang through the room. Unmistakably Naruto's. Sasuke's gut twisted at the sound of it. He looked around to try and find the source of the laugh, but he saw nothing. His feet were nailed to the ground, making him unable to move as the world blurred around him.

Sasuke blinked, and suddenly Naruto was right in front of him, staring and grinning right at him. "Ready to die, Sasuke?" Naruto hissed out in a low whisper and made a move like he was going to headbutt Sasuke. Right at that moment, Naruto dropped the Genjutsu.

Morino only saw Sasuke freeze up for a second before stumbling back with a yell. He caught Sasuke before he could fall, gave Naruto one serious look and then ushered Sasuke out. He didn't know what happened in that second, but he did know something happened and that meant visiting hours were over, and the door needed to be closed. Sasuke had successfully pulled Naruto out of the stupor he had seemed to be in, but Morino highly doubted that this was any better.

"Sasuke..." Naruto sneered after Sasuke. "Sasuke, did I scare you..?" The sing-song tone in his voice made the hairs on the back of Sasuke's neck stand up. He stopped and turned around, ready to walk back in if it wasn't for Morino stopping him and pulling him out of the room. He kept his focus on Naruto, though. Naruto's face morphed into the terrifying grin Sasuke had come to know so well over time. "Are you afraid of me?" Naruto asked in a deadly serious voice. It would have been unsettling in itself, but Naruto broke down in a fit of giggles, which made it even worse. "You should be." Naruto added, then started laughing like a maniac. His laugh was loud enough to echo throughout the hallway outside his cell, leaving everyone who heard it feeling disturbed. At the same time, Naruto started pulling at his chains with all his strength, ignoring the fact that the metal bands dug into his skin and drew blood. "Don't wait for me... I'll catch up with you..."

Morino closed the heavy metal door. It almost shut out all sound coming from the cell, but Sasuke could still make out the faint laughter made of nightmares echoing in the darkness.

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