Chapter 20. Vengeful Desires

Chapter 20. Vengeful Desire

Maki's P.O.V

I opened my eyes and I was in a dim lit room. The lightbulb was flickering and there was an eery silence. No windows, just 4 white walls and a small door for an entrance.

I had a head ache and the last thing I remembered was the curse mark trying to take over my body.

I was in a hospital bed that was pushed to the corner of the small room. What could have happened? I tried so hard to control it. I couldn't have possibly...

I got out of bed feeling a little dizzy. The room wasn't very big at all, so It took a little less than 8 steps to make it to the door leading to freedom. 

I twisted the knob, but as I expected, It was locked.

I knocked. "Hello? Anybody there? I'm okay now... so you can let me out!" I called through.

I heard some muffled noises on the other side of the doorway, then silence. A few thumps and then I heard footsteps walking my direction.

I noticed the shadow under the door and the click of a lock unlocking. The twisting of the doorknob from the other side, and the door opening slightly.

I backed up expecting someone like Kakashi or my teammates.

What I wasn't expecting was the image of the creepy snake guy from the forest of death.

Orochimaru.

I made an inhuman growling sound and got into a defensive stance. This guy thought he  could mess with me... I'll show him what he's messing with.

He laughed. "Calm down child, I'm not here to fight. I just came to... talk."

"I'm not interested in talking." I stated bluntly.

"You're not interested on avenging your parents death?"

That ripped through my guard a bit. "What? No. You killed my parents."

He shook his head. "No, I was ordered to. But i'm no longer associated with that group, so I could help you avenge your parents.. if you let me."

"The akatsuki." I muttered, referring to '"That group'".

"Yes. I left them, I had my own..interests. But I'm willing to make you a deal to avenge your parents."

I stiffened. "What do you want."

He laughed a little. "Become my apprentice. Let me train you."

"How would that benefit you?" I ask, confused. He must have some hidden meaning behind all of this.

He shrugged. "I have my own plans, and i'll need some back up when it comes to that. Kabuto isn't enough. And it's not as easy as you might think it will be. I'm asking you to betray the leaf and become a rogue ninja for me."

That little b****. I knew Kabuto was no good.

"I have to think about it..." I said hesitantly.

He smiled. "I'll send Kabuto soon after the last exam. So decide quickly, young one.. And while you're thinking about it, remember that I can help you control the curse mark. It can be a remarkable power if you know how to use it properly."

Before I could reply, he disappeared.

That guy really creeped me out. I don't know why I even told him that I would think about it. I know I'm not going to abandon the leaf for this guy. He's insane.

He almost got me though, with the idea for avenging my parents.

He was probably bluffing though. I could avenge them on my own when I decided that I had become strong enough. 

First I needed to learn some sword skills with Inazuma. For Zabuza.

I'll ask Kakashi about that later.

I twisted the knob and this time it twisted freely and the door opened when I tugged at it. Outside, a dozen anbu had fallen. How on earth did Orochimaru get in?

He must've done something to them...

"Maki, did you do this?!!" Kakashi Uncle's voice came out of knowwhere. I looked up and he was right in front of me.

"What! No, of course not! It was-" I stopped, thinking about Orochimaru's offer. No need for Kakashi Uncle to know about that.

"It was just like this when I opened the door." I finished.

"Do you remember what happened?" He asked.

I shook my head. "The last thing I remember is the curse mark trying to pull out my chakra and blacking out."

Remembering the moment, I held my neck, my hand covering the mark. "What happened after that?"

"You destroyed Lee in half a second."

"... How bad is it?" I asked, looking at the floor, guilt consuming me.

Kakashi sighed. "They don't know yet. They're going to keep you keep you in isolation for a while, you know. They won't risk it after what happened during the preliminaries..."

I nodded sadly. " I know, and I understand. The preliminaries? How'd everybody do?"

"They had an extra match. Sasuke and Naruto made it. Sakura didn't make it, but she's grown so much. All of you have, especially Naruto. I'm proud of you all."

I gave my uncle a small smile. "Thanks, but no thanks. The exams actually took me down a notch. I'm good, but i'm not as good as I thought I was. It made me realize that there are other people stronger than me, and that I have to get stronger if I want to get anywhere in life. My goal is to be world-known like you and my grandfather, the white fang. But how am I going to do that when I can't even control a stupid curse mark?"

"You'll get there, Maki. You are powerful as it is. You've got amazing chakra levels. Your stamina isn't as good as Naruto's, but even mine isn't as good as his. That kid's determined.You just need to keep training and you'll get there."

"Training training training! I've been training since I was 3, you'd think that I'd be more powerful than you by now! What's wrong with me?" I yelled.

"Maki, what's up with you and this whole 'power' deal? You're already skilled above your aged." Kakashi said.

"'Skilled above my age' Isn't going to  get me to akatsuki level. It isn't going to allow me to avenge my dead parents."

I was on the verge of having a mental breakdown. Seriously, what was wrong with me?

"You know what Kakashi Sensei, I'll go back into the room. Can you just leave me alone for now?"

I didn't wait for a reply. I just walked into the small room and closed the door.

At first there was silence, then I heard footsteps and the click of a lock.

*************

There wasn't a clock in this room, but it felt like forever. I'd been staring at the white ceiling for god knows how long, thinking.

But there was a lot to think about.

First, the whole lee incident. They don't know how bad it was, which was bad.

Then, the whole Orochimaru thing. Why did he want me? And why did he want Sasuke?

"Zabuza, what would you do?" I muttered to myself.

He already had crazy skills, not to mention Haku.

I eventually fell asleep.

*********

"Wake up, Maki." I heard Kakashi telling me, shaking me awake.

I opened my eyes groggily, squinting up at him. "What do you want?" I asked.

"The hokage's decided that you're no longer a threat, since you're living with me anyways. But I or some other Jounin have to keep an eye on you 24/7 for a while. At least you don't have to be confined in this room for days..."

"I'd like to talk to the hokage." I stated.

I wasn't in the mood to talk to my Uncle, or as a matter of fact, anyone other than the hokage right now. All I wanted was to get stronger and to be able to control this stupid curse mark instead of it controlliing me.

It could happen if you trained with Orochimaru... He's powerful. He's one of the three legendary sannin after all... 

The thought invaded my mind.

Shut up. I told myself.

Kakashi nodded and led me out of the room and into another room where the hokage was sitting down.

I had no idea where we were. Probably in another part of the building where the preliminaries were taking place.

"You can leave, Kakashi. I'd like to talk to Maki alone. Same goes for all of you." He said, looking at the anbu that had followed me in. They all left so that it was just the hokage and me.

"Don't let him get to you Maki." The hokage said to me, giving me a pointed look. He knew that I knew what he was talking about, but I didn't want to acknowledge that right now, so I changed the topic.

"Hokage-sama, I would like your permission to leave the village and find a teacher skilled in swords."

The hokage looked startled. Guess he wasn't expecting that..

"I'm sorry Maki, but after what happened earlier today, I won't grant you permission to leave the village. But I can help you out. As you know, I've put out that you're not allowed to be alone. You need a jounin with you at all times until we figure things out with this curse mark. However, I know a jounin that is particularly skilled with swords. I can arrange for you to stay with him for a while, if he's willing to teach you. In this way, you can stay with him and train with him and he can keep an eye on you. Does that sound fair?" The hokage asked me kindly.

I nodded. "Of course, Thank you hokage-sama."

"Good. I'll see if the preliminaries are over." He looked into a little crystal ball sitting on his desk and nodded 2 minutes later. "They just finished." 

He called one of his anbu in. "Call Hayate Gekko to the hokage's office."

"The proctor of the third exam?" I asked, bewildered.

"Yes, he was in the anbu for a while. His main skill is with swords, I think he'll be a great sensei for you."

There was a knock on the door.

"Come in!" Hokage-sama said loudly.

"You asked to see me Hokage-Sama?"

A/N HIIII :) i'm working on the next chapter, so no time for an authors note! but anyways, hope you liked it. Vote, comment, follow <3