Starring:
Date: December 21, 2016
Summary:
Kaneko and Akio find themselves kidnapped by the sect of Murasame who plot to overthrow their own village leadership and perhaps even the Tsuchikage. For now, though, they are simply introduced to their new lives.
Poster's note: foul language filtered in obvious places.
"The Iron Caged - The Forged Forgotten"
Land of Earth
Kaneko and Akio would be carried off to a place that Akio would know and hate. Or at least, the hideout was similar to that which he knew. He was still stuck in his cage and chained up like a dangerous animal, of course, and Kaneko was in her sack. When they got to the destination, their captors would take them to a dungeon-like area, throwing them both in a cell like lumps of meat. Akio would have his gag and blindfold removed, at least, but his arms and legs remained bound, and the collar around his neck was chained to the far wall. Kaneko's bag was open, but she wasn't let out unless she was going to crawl out herself.
Akio was listening to his surroundings, but not picking much up sadly. Too much going on overall. It didn't take long though for him to be stuffed into a cage gag and blindfold removed. Even if he saw Kaneko he wouldn't say anything yet. They didn't much like people screaming at the top of their longs or speaking in general. For now he would sit injured and a little bloody simly thinking. Hopefully Kaneko was alright…he would get her out of this situation…the one he put her in. Hopefully he could spot something off about the room he was in.
Nope! There was nothing odd about the room. There were no guards, actually, but that's because there were so many chakra suppressing seals and chains in place to keep their prisoners from moving around that they were hardly worried. Kaneko would eventually wake up and let out a small groan of pain. Her head hurt. It hurt so much to even think. Where was she? Who was she? She could remember her name… What else was there…?
Akio not finding anything decided hammer it. The guards didn't seem to be here right now and he wanted to make sure Kaneko was safe. "Kaneko! Can you hear me?" He hoped that no guards were close enough to hear. Surely he would end up with a new scar for his collection. "Kaneko. Are you okay?" He frowned and for the moment struggled to get rid of this chain.
Kaneko groans again and curls up into a ball. Her head hurt. This strange was yelling at her, too. Go away!!! Of course, she can't ignore him for long. The young Murasame also needs fresh air, so she drags herself out of the bag and pokes her head out, squinting in what little light there is.
Akio hadn't seen her yet, or heard her speak. He was actually pretty worried that she was doing worse then he orignally thought. "Kaneko…. Are you okay? Are you awake?" He frowned a bit and began struggling again with trying to escape from these chains even if he knew he didn't have the power to break free from it.
Kaneko had to take a second to remember anything. And that was very little… "Wh… Who're you?" she asks warily, grey eyes a bit dazed as she attempts to focus them on Akio. "You… You're chained up… Does that mean you're bad? I should stay away from you, right?" She winces a bit as a wave of nausea hits her, and she quits talking for a bit.
Akio stops struggling and looks at Kaneko. "Wait… what? You don't know me? Kaneko…" That his must of done more then he thought now that he sees the effect of it. "My name is Akio…. and no I am not bad. We were both kidnapped by the real bad men who are locking both of us away. Don't worry… I will somehow find us a way back out of here and maybe Hotaru could help you recover your memories then."
Kaneko doesn't hear Akio very well, feeling a bit too sick to do much but try and keep her stomach. As the pair talk, two guards would arrive. "Hey, quit talking!" he yells at Akio. One guard moves to unlock the cage, and he grabs Kaneko. The man just casually picks her up and hefts her over his shoulder before editing the cage, and the other guard watches Akio closely. "Dang kid… We went through all this trouble for him?"
Akio looks at the two guards as they approach and his expression turns dark. He pulls at the chains once more trying to pull them out of the wall, or somehow get free himself. "You want me to stop talking huh? Well tell me this. Why did you get her huh? What did she do to deserve this? You only wanted me!"
There's no way the chain is breaking anytime soon. The links have no welded spot, as they were made purely with ninjutsu. Manipulating existing metal into the shapes they are now so they couldn't be broken. The one guard stays where he is while the other takes Kaneko away. "Hmm? You know we can't have witnesses. Bad for business. And that she's a Murasame means we can't just kill her. So we took her." The guard shrugs, as if this information was obvious.
Akio shakes his head a moment. "So you all jump the both of us. Too afraid to take on some kids one on one? I bet you couldn't even fight me one on one if I was at full strength." He glared at the guard and just shook his head once more. Where are you taking her huh? What are you doing to her?" His voice sound gravelly as if he had a sort of growl behind each word.
The guard scowls a bit at Akio. "Shut your trap, kid! We're more than enough to take you on one on one. But we don't need to obliterate you. Nope. We need you for better things that as a mere body."
Meanwhile, Kaneko was carried to a nice room and looked over by a doctor. She was examined quite throughly, even. They took her height, weight, tested her eyesight and reflexes, measured the three most important body parts of any girl, and otherwise just invaded all of her privacy. Once they confirmed she was healthy, whoever was in charge was more than delighted to hear she lost her memory.
Akio just moved away from the cell door now and sat as far back as he could. Now instead of fighting against the chains physically he would try and fight these chakra suppresing seals mentally. He had good chakra control ability, and it shouldn't be too hard to hopefully do something if he need to. Maybe he could use something else to either see what is going on or break free. He didn't need to be getting more injured then he already was, but he just felt angry. What could they be doing with Kaneko…
Kaneko would find herself in a rather empty room after the more-than-thorough inspection. She was mostly confused, though something told her that something was wrong. She didn't know what, though… The boy from before, Akio… He was nice. She liked him, right? Did she like him in that way? She couldn't tell. And thinking about it even more made her head hurt. The girl sighs a bit and closes her eyes, only to have them fly open when someone walks into the room. The person who was going to convince her of her 'new' life.
This person walked in and at first was just out of sight, but stepped into perfect view rather quickly. "Good…good. Seems you are healthy. Though you seem to have lost some of your memories. My name is Tanjiro." He looks at some notepad for a moment before glancing back at her. "Do you remember your name? I figure that wild boy shouting at you gave you your name, but before that. Did you know it of your own free thinking?" He grabbed a small writing utensil before pulling up a chair to sit next to her. "Once I know how well off you are with your own memories we can go through the process of letting you get used to everything again and maybe try and help you recover your memories. Though the process may be grueling and until then we may need you to stay down in this hideout of ours. If you have any questions feel free to ask."
Kaneko felt a bit scared by this Tanjiro. She wasn't sure why, though. Something in the back of her mind just made her recoil, though. "H… Hai… I remember that… I'm Murasame Kaneko…" She frowns a bit. "I don't know… If I remember much else, though." the girl furrows her brow in thought, trying to remember and coming up blank. The only thing offering her at least a bit of insight was her gut… And that was less than reliable when she had little reason to trust it.
Tanjiro frowned a small moment and marked something off his list. "Alright Kaneko. At least I won't have to remind you that we are family. Nearly everyone down here are Murasame. Though it is more of a clan than a family." His eyes glance to the door as it is opened. A kid walked in who had to be no older then Kaenko was. "Yoshida who let you in here? Get back to your daily chores now." The kid frowns a little fire burning in his eyes. "I just wanted to see her." The kid pointed towards where Kaneko was hidden partly behind Tajiro. Tanjiro shook his head before speaking. "Don't worry Yoshida I will introduce you again when she is feeling better. That kid we got chained up really did a number on her." Both lies were so genuine sounding as if he actually believed what he said. Both saying again as if Kaneko had met them and saying that Akio was the one to injure Kaneko. "Alright Yoshida. Please go now." Yoshida quickly bowed and left the roomm.
Kaneko's grey eyes shift to the door when it opens. They're still a bit dull from pain, but she manages to wave a bit. The girl's eyes flicker to Tanjiro, and she waits for Yoshida to leave. Naturally, she had a million questions… What should she ask first?! "Umm… Where… am I?" she asks hesitantly.
"Ahhh. I figured you would ask this. All I can tell you right now is that we are inside of a secure bunker of sorts. Also it is where the members of the clan loyal to me live." Tanjiro sets the notepad down on for a moment. "I wish I could tell you more on our hideout, but until we know that you were not brainwashed or have some kind of thing in you tracking your thoughts…we just can't risk revealing our base. Like that kid you saw before. He is with the others, and we captured him while he was trying to harm you."
"Then…" Kaneko hesitates a bit as she tries to think through the haze of pain. "What happened… Exactly?" she asks. The girl's eyes widen a bit. "Brainwashed? By who? And Akio is bad, then? He said he wasn't… He said that you were the bad guys… But you said he attacked me…" Some things just weren't adding up well in her mind…
"Here. Slow down Kaneko and I will explain everything. It is a lot to take in." Tanjiro took the notepad back into his hand and looked at it a moment. "See. Akio was one of us, but a man came and kidnapped him from us. The next time we saw him he seemed to be unsure of who we were, and decided to attack us. His potential is great, and we were hoping he could could help lead us to a new age here. That has failed you see, and the one that was to help him with that was you. You have just as much potential to be great, and it seems that is why he attacked you. The people who brainwashed him wanted to take you out while they could to prevent anyone ever stopping him. The reason he is probably seeming like a good guy to you is because…he was. If anyone can bring him back to our side it would be you, but first we need to make sure you are taken care of."
"So then… Who're the people that brainwashed Akio?" Kaneko asks with a frown lingering on her face. Things were at least starting to click together. Starting to make sense to her mind. And this man didn't seem all that bad. He was nice to her so far, at least… "Umm… And what should I do now? I guess… I failed Akio in a way, then… So…" She hesitates again, wondering… But everything was blank. Tanjiro was filling in the painting for her, though, which was good. Right?
Tanjiro frowned and stood up for a moment. "The people that brainwashed Akio are other members of our clan. The other ones. They reside inside a stronger fortress then ours which is why we have to hide all the time." He pauses a moment and offers a hand to her. "Here you wanna try standing up." He would pause again giving her a moment before speaking more. "Anyways. You didn't fail Akio. You still have time once you are better. You just have to convince him that we are still the good guys. You have to make him trust you more then the brainwashing makes him trust the others. Which he may already trust you somewhat even though he attacked you….it is just his trust for us that is mainly broken… I think once you are on your feet and have at least remade your memories through time that you will be able to help Akio…at least more then we can. You don't seem to be brainwashed like he is."
Kaneko takes the hand and slides out of her seat to try and stand. She has a sense of 'oh-anvil-I'm-gonna-puke', but is otherwise fine. And she doesn't actually throw up. After getting over the initial wave of nausea, she looks around the room slowly. "So… I just need to… get him back on our side?" she asks Tanjiro, grey eyes flickering in the man's direction.
Tanjiro makes sure the girl is alright at first before nodding. "Yes. How you do this is up to you, but getting him back on our side is the top priority." He moves around the room grabbing a few things before bringing them back to Kaneko. "Here. Take this and help wash it down with this." There were some pills in one of his hands and a glass of water in the other. "It should help with any headache or similar problems you may feel."
Kaneko nods slowly once again and takes the pills and water. She remembers how to take these, at least, so she downs them quickly. And she feels a bit better. Definitely not as dizzy or headache-y. "Umm… Arigatou, Tanjiro-san… Umm…" She frowns a bit, feeling completely lost. "What should I do now?"
Tanjiro frowns a bit and looks around the room. "Well. Now we can just make sure you are able to get cleaned up some, and then you can of course get back to being used to this place. Maybe it will jog some memories, and if not hopefully the people will. I can let my son show you around some if you like. Either way there are lenty that can help if not him. I would offer my own services, but I have work to do after I make sure you are all set."
Kaneko nods a bit. "Alright… I'm fine with that. Let's go." She waits a bit for Tanjiro to show her what to do, then would go do whatever it was. She wasn't really sure what she was doing… But she knew she wanted to try her best to befriend Akio. That was good, right? She was taking steps in the right direction!
Tanjiro nodded slowly and escorted Kaneko if she was ready out of the room. Right away there were a few people that could be seen walking around dressed in full body armor that were mostly just walking about and down one of the two directions a group of people wearning normal clothing were walking. "Hmmm. I am sure my wife would love to meet you. Her name is Katsuko, and she should be this way if you care to follow. She can help get you all cleaned up and make sure you are relaxed and comfortable here." With that he started walking towards the group of people nearby.
Kaneko looks at the people in full armor with wide grey eyes. She can't help but feel nervous around them. "Katsuko…" she mumbles to herself. "Umm… Hai, I don't mind meeting her," Kaneko replies, tagging along. "Umm… What do I usually do? When I'm here?" she asks, starting to feel a bit better. That medicine works wonders.
Tanjiro chuckles a moment. "I don't keep tabs on everything you do Kaneko when not doing daily chores and upkeep around the place. We will have to get you another schedule again. Katsuko can help with that when we get there." He walked a little longer and opened a door to another room. Inside was a few different kids seemingly aged between eight and twelve. Then the woman that was talking to them when Tanjiro opened the door pauses and looks at Tanjiro and Kaneko before speaking. "Oh! You look better already." The woman walked over and bent over to look Kaneko in the face. "How are you feeling?" Tanjiro looked at the two and nods to himself. "Alright Kaneko. You should be good here with her. Katsuko if you need anything just send someone to get me. You know where I will be." And he then leaves the room. Unknown to Kaneko he is heading to the cells.
Kaneko would follow Tanjiro, then look to the woman. Katsuko, right? She bows to the newest of the group and stares at the other kids. "Umm…" She obviously nervous about the whole meet and greet. The Murasame had never felt so out of place before in her life! Not that she would remember… But still.
Tanjiro walks down to the cells at a brisk pace, wanting to see the fire that managed to escape him… The guards would step aside quickly when they saw him, and he enters the room where Akio is. Yes, that was definitely him… He had little doubt that Akio would have forgotten him, too…
Katsuko would smile sweetly towards Kaneko before leading her to a chair where she could sit down. "Now I have heard you lost some of your memories no? Well in that case until I finish up here you can sit and watch." She then stands up straight and taps her forhead with a finger before looking at the class here. "On second thought for the rest of our time here I think everyone here can talk about themselves. Maybe help jog your memories some Kaneko?" She offered a sweet smile and asked to make sure Kaneko was okay with it.
Akio was in the cell sitting against the back wall and he was just staying focused trying to keep some reserves of chakra in his system. If anything he could try to escape through the earth…though he wasn't really good at it. Then Tanjiro walked in and Akio's eyes opened. Instantly rage filled those eyes and he jumped to his feet if the chains allowed it. "YOU! Where did you have Kaneko taken to!?"
"Unless you cooperate, you trough, she'll have a lot more to deal with than the simple torture I'm putting her through now," Tanjiro says with only a hint of anger in his voice. "If you want to see your friend again, you'll be doing exactly as I say, no 'if's, 'and's, or 'but's about it. One complaint from you means another hour's worth of torture for your friend." He gets an evil smile, then. "And further punishment on your own body."
Kaneko sits in the chair and looks to the rest of the class. "M… Maybe. I don't recognize anyone, though…" She frowns a bit, then something sends a wave of terror through her, but she isn't sure why. If Nendo, Mitsue, Akio, or Hotaru were here, though, they would recognize Murasame Zora in the crowd. He also looked surprised to see the Murasame there. Kaneko was so good and upstanding in the village usually, and she didn't have any ill will towards the clan. Why was she here?
Akio dropped to his knees rather quickly at Tanjiro's words. "What.. why would you be torturing her? She didn't do anything to you. She doesn't even know anything valuable for the village or the Murasame." He shakes his head for a moment, and glares up at Tanjiro. "What do you want huh? What do you want me to do?" The one thing they never could hold over him before. Any other kid he just made sure not to befriend because of what they could do to them, but now….he said someone whose saftey he cared about when before he only worried about his own.
Katsuko brought her own chair and sat in a circle inviting everyone else to do the same. Then she pointed to the kid that was right on her left which was the opposite side of where Kaneko was. "My name is Murasame Chiyu, and I enjoy reading and practicing with a sword." She looks at Kaneko and smiles a bit before looking to the next kid.
"To keep you in line. What I want is for you to work with us so that we can finally take over the Murasame clan. If you do as you're told, then Kaneko will be fine. I might even let you see her," Tanjiro says sweetly. "Do we have an agreement?"
"I'm Murasame Zora. I like to train in ninjutsu and use medical ninjutsu to try and study different animals." For torture purposes. Kaneko would nod slowly to the two that spoke, still feeling extremely nervous around Zora for no reason that she could tell. "It's nice to meet you…"
Akio just fell to the ground as if defeated, but he had a small grin on his face. His voice did not show it though. "Fine… Just don't hurt her. Don't hurt Kaneko and I will do whatever you want. So yes we have an agreement." He stays looking down at the ground.
The next kid grinned widly and jumped to his feet. "I am Murasame Fujio! I expire to be the best and strongest Murasame ever!" The kid looked to be one of the youngest here. "I can already manipulate metal and everything!"
Tanjiro nods lightly and says, "Good. You'll be staying down here for a bit, so I hope you're comfortable." He signals to a guard, who steps forward, and he says, "You know what to do… Minimal rations." Then he turns and leaves. As a note, the cells are made of a very thick and strong wood if they aren't made of metal, and the chakra suppressant seals should keep Jutsu at bay.
Kaneko would smile just a bit at Fujio. "Cool! I want to manipulate metal. I can only use my sword right no-" she breaks off a bit in confusion. Her sword? She could use one? Where did that information come from? She knew that if she had one in her hands, things would feel a lot more right…
Akio looks at Tanjiro frowning slightly. "Fine with me, but you keep that promise. I want to see her. She doesn't deserve the same treatment that you gave me my whole life here." He just shakes his head though as the man leaves and he hears the words. Yeah the same thing that kept him so small from before.
All the other kids would go through their introductions and the last one would finish before looking at Kaneko. Then Katsuko looked at Kaneko. "Oh good. You are remembering things. That is great. Anything else you remember from before?"
Kaneko frowns a bit in thought. "Umm… I just… I don't think so…" She glances around the room a bit, but the only one she has a strong reaction to is Zora. And she had a strong reaction to Akio. Why, though? What did those two have to do with in her life? She sighs mentally, but her attention turns to the class before her. "So… what do we do now?" she asks.
Katsuko nodded slowly. "Alright then. Class is over for now." She dismisses everyone and then people start getting up to leave and such. "Alright Kaneko. We can go explore the complex now. Or we could probably make sure you are cleaned up some. I have a daugher who is older then you, so some of her old clothes should fit you well."
Kaneko nods quickly, then regrets the fast movement. The medicine earlier made her feel better, but sudden movements like that brought the nausea back to the surface. "Umm… Hai… Let's go, then." The young Murasame would make her way to the bathroom area, looking around and pretty happy with the state of things. She could get used to this if life continued on in the same state. Something in the back of her mind was grumpy, but she just chalked it up to the headache.
Katsuko was getting clothes together and had found them finally. The bathroom had a changing room upon other things with a seperate door leading to the bath itself. "Kaneko darling. I think I found some clothes for you." The clothes she had found were not really special in anyway. Pretty much normal clothing that might be a little big for Kaneko, but for the most part would fit well. "Your other clothes will be taken to just get washed. It might be a few hours before they are cleaned if you want to know." She had not placed the clothes inside yet or grabbed the old ones to make sure Kaneko was already moved on to the bath. Didn't want to embarrass the girl if she was shy.
Kaneko would nod a bit even though Katsuko can't see. The girl would strip take the change of clothes from the older Murasame before she stripped and tossed her current clothes out the door. Then she would enter the tub and take a nice warm bath.
Katsuko would take the dirty clothes away for a moment to where she could get them cleaned. It wouldn't be long before she returned to do things around this mini-house inside a bunker. She didn't have the clothes with her as they were not cleaned yet, but they were still being washed at the moment. It seemed that food was starting to be made and it was enough for more then just Katsuko and Kaneko.
Kaneko eventually would get all cleaned up, and she got out and dried herself off and hopped into her new clothes. They were definitely a bit bigger than they ought to for her. She peeks out and looks around. "Umm… So… should we go and explore now?" she wonders, hoping that Katsuko was around to answer her questions still.
Katsuko looked over to the spot where Kaneko would be. "Oh sure. I was just getting this started before I left. It should be done by the time we get back, and someone else will be here to make sure it doesn't get overdone." She walked over to Kaneko and smiled a bit much for seemingly out of nowhere. "Oh you look beautiful in those clothes. Okay okay lets go. Anything you want to ask about the place?" She had started walking to the exit.
Kaneko shakes her head. "Oh… No, not right now… Thank you for all your help, Katsuko-San. Umm… I feel a bit tired, actually… Where could I get some sleep?" Kaneko wonders. For some reason, she felt nervous again… Why?! It was bugging her… But she didn't want to consult the nice lady, which made her feel even worse.
Maybe it wouldn't be noticed, but there was a flash of annoyance in her eyes. It was gone just as quick though. "Oh no problem. I think for now you could sleep in my bed, and I could wake you up when food is done. We had a place for you to stay before with other kids that don't exactly have their parents, but you can stay here for now. We could even get you your own bed. If you wanted."
RPCOMBAT: Kaneko defends against with a PERCEPTION…25
Kaneko feels a chill run down her spine when she sees Katsuko's expression, but it was gone. "Sure. That sounds fine. I- *yawn* think any bed is better than none." She pauses a moment. "Umm… Why aren't I staying at the other place, then? Nevermind… Please, lead on."
Katsuko's exression was all smiles again as she lead on. "Well we wouldn't want you to feel awkward with all these kids if you didn't remember any." She lead Kaneko to a room and it had a big bed in the middle up against one wall. "You can sleep in here, and I will wake you up when food is ready… so go ahead and relax." She had already started walking back to the door.
Kaneko nods and crawls into the huge bed, privately amazed by its size and softness. It's pretty easy for her to fall asleep suddenly despite her feelings of nervousness, if only because she basically got smacked around and was walking around right after. Zzzzz
Katsuko leaves and shuts the door. Unknown to Kaneko though is that there was a lock on the side Katsuko is now on and she flips it. This leaves Kaneko locked on the other side even if she woke up and wanted to leave the room. Mostly they didn't want her roaming around if no one was here to keep an eye on her as she did.
