Warning: The chapter contains slight gore and abuse.
(Akio POV)
—-------------
(In his mindscape)
"I think... I should stop... practicing…" I muttered, feeling mentally exhausted from repeatedly forming the Flying Raijin seal, only to have it break each time before it is fully formed.
Releasing multiple clones, I carefully inspected their memories one by one and felt a pang of disappointment at the lack of progress.
Oh well, I have to keep going as usual.
Even with Lady Mito's guidance, it wouldn't drastically shorten the time needed to master this jutsu; it still takes time.
Gathering my chakra, I readied myself to leave this mental space.
"Genjutsu: Release!"
***
As I opened my eyes, I was greeted by darkness, my old friend again, which I greeted back because I have manners and all.
I checked my body out of routine, ensuring everything was as it should be, and pinched my skin to confirm I wasn't still trapped in my mindscape. Satisfied, I stretched my limbs, which were aching to move.
Reaching for the light switch to illuminate the room, I headed to the bathroom to begin my daily morning routine: brushing my teeth, showering, putting on my uniform, and reheating Anbu rations which alone rumored to repelled the Akimichi Clan members from joining the department.
After washing the dishes and placing them on the dish rack, I made my way to the door.
As the door creaked open, I was met by a torrent of rain, as if the gods above were shedding tears over the war they had brought (though they wouldn't lift a finger to stop it).
Grabbing the umbrella from the stand by the door, I opened it and stepped out of my apartment, ensuring to lock the door behind me.
Due to the heavy downpour, the streets were nearly empty.
I saw only a few: the filthy Uchihas who were patrolling street, even though people rather have protection from them; shinobi rushing to the Mission Assignment Desk inside the Academy who were called for battlefield deployments or assignments to guard nobles in the Land of Fire; and Might Duy, clad in a raincoat over his green tights, waking everyone up from their slumber as our friendly villagehood's human rooster.
"YOUTH!!!"
After getting my daily dose of enthusiasm through my poor, poor ears, I continued on my way to work.
***
Entering the Anbu Headquarters, I made my way directly to the receptionist's desk, feeling slightly disoriented upon seeing someone new in place of the usual two.
'Isn't it too early for Natsuki to go to kindergarten?' I wondered, knowing her shift should end in about an hour. Yume's shift starts after an hour.
"Excuse me, is there a problem?" the unfamiliar receptionist asked, looking concerned and checking her appearance from various angles.
"Not really, I was just surprised to see someone else handling Natsuki-san or Yume-san's duties after seeing them here for over nine years," I replied truthfully, trying to put her at ease.
Even though all three of them wore masks, recognizing them by their stature was easy after spending so much time in the department.
"Oh, I understand. Due to the stress of managing so many mission assignments, Natsuki-senpai requested time off, which Sandaime-sama approved, so I was assigned her duties temporarily," she explained.
'Why do I feel she went to the orphanage…'
"Anyway, if you don't mind, could you state your codename right now? Though there is no hurry as there is no line of people waiting behind you, I need to manage mission scrolls, paperwork, and keys under the desk as soon as possible…" the receptionist added earnestly, lowering her voice.
"No need to worry, I understand what you mean. My codename is Nezumi Ichi," I replied, softening my tone to avoid pressuring her.
"...Occupation?" she continued after a brief pause, her fingers flipping through pages.
"I'm the First Anbu Squad Leader of the Anbu White Ops division and an Anbu Torturer from the T and I subdivision of the Anbu Grey Ops division," I stated the mouthful as usual.
"Oh… umm…"
"Don't worry, you were just doing your job. Don't let formality hinder your work," I assured her, noting her nervousness and wanting to avoid pettiness unlike some of my colleagues.
She sighed with relief and continued verifying my information.
After rummaging through multiple documents under the desk, she finally found my identity document with an attached mission/task and sighed with relief again.
"Your identity has been confirmed. Here's the key to your workplace and a message from Sandaime-sama," the receptionist said gently, handing me the key and a scroll with care.
"By the way, umm… Squad leader, is it allowed to adopt a child if you join the Anbu?" she asked as I walked towards my workplace.
"It honestly depends, but why do you ask?"
"Nothing really. When Natsuki-senpai was showing me how to handle the receptionist work a week ago, I thought I heard her mention an orphanage. When she left, I wondered, 'Is she planning to adopt a child?' Maybe she's looking to fill a void inside her."
'She's filling a void, but not in the way you think,' I sighed internally, knowing Natsuki's preference.
"If you intend to adopt a child, send a letter to Sandaime-sama. He will inform you of the qualifications needed. Though, only send the letter if you're serious about adopting, not out of curiosity," I advised before heading upstairs to my workplace.
…
'Why can't I recall seeing her?'
'Never mind, she must be a new recruit…'
'It's normal if that's the case, I am just overthinking as always...'
Brushing off my thought, I reached the midpoint to the first floor and unsealed the scroll on the stairs.
---
Meet me in my office at 6pm.
---
'I suppose it was related to that mission he said he was going to discuss with me and Sakumo.'
Rolling and tucking the scroll inside the inner pocket of my jacket, I made my way up to the second floor.
"Good morning, Akio-kun," greeted one colleague as I passed, feeling he would drop dead on the spot after a few moments.
"Good morning, Akio-san," said another, before snuggling herself underneath the chair.
"Good morning….," echoed a third, before noticing him asleep in the left corner desk, making me wonder what dream he was seeing.
As they greeted me with disinterest, I responded with a nod, matching their level of enthusiasm.
For anyone outside the T and I subdivision of the Anbu Grey Ops division, it might seem amusing to see everyone acting almost in a comedic way. But honestly, they are just mentally exhausted and eager for their fifteen-hour shifts to end after an hour or so, so that they can finally rest.(Though, sometimes sleep is too much for some of them to resist.)
Entering my designated torture room, I pulled up the third and newest edition of the series "Konoha: The Will of Fire" on the drawer of my desk to brush up on my ability to bullshit with Sandaime-sama.
It comes in handy if you want to communicate with the master bullshitter and really understand what he is saying in a twisted way.
I also found it fascinating how diverse and meaningless his word choice was in comparison to his first book, which was later discontinued. (I wonder why.)
Inwardly laughing at the nonsense he wrote in his series' third installment, I was interrupted by a guard who entered and brought a captive to my room.
Looking at her dark, feminine complexion, it was clear she was the sixteenth Kumo shinobi sent to me in a row. (Seriously, where is the diversity of captives when you need it?)
The guard handed me the scroll before leaving. I quickly unsealed it and read the details they had gathered about the captive.
As I suspected, she was from Kumogakure and appeared to be in her twenties when she was captured—alone, without any companions. This time however, she was discovered in the Land of Fire, so she might hold valuable intel.
Reading further, I learn she was difficult to subdue, causing casualties among the Anbu White Ops division and requiring reinforcements to knock her out.
So, she must have been at least an A-rank shinobi who was able to kill five and injure ten Anbu before being captured.
Such a loss for Kumogakure…what a pity..
A rank shinobi are pretty rare to have, far better than a dozen of B rank shinobi or a mutiple dozens of C rank shinobi, though not as much in comparison to S rank shinobi who made the profession well known in the first place.
Unsurprisingly, initial interrogation attempts failed, leading to her transfer to my custody.
With her chakra points sealed and her body restrained to a vertical whiteboard in the center of the room, I went to retrieve the 'equipment' I planned to use today.
Returning with the equipment that I placed on the table and brought a chair for her, I noticed she was unconscious. I took a small scroll from my inner jacket pocket and positioned it towards her.
'Unseal.'
"Gasp!"
She coughed and gasped for air after being hit by a giant water bullet, slowly opening her eyes and looking around her surroundings.
"Let me out, you pervert!"
As she struggled against her restraints, I waited until she calmed down.
There's no point in torturing someone who isn't focused on the torturer.
"Kill me, Konoha scum! I will not betray my home to the likes of you!"
Blocking her spit with my shadow, I removed her restraints one by one by my shadow and restricted her limbs with my shadow before she could try to escape.
Controlling my shadow, I forcefully placed her on a chair and formed shadow cuffs on her limbs to keep her restrained.
"Do whatever you want, pervert. I won't yield before you!"
...
What?
Looking at her again, confused, I noticed her skin was visible through the thin fabric of her clothes on her shoulder, and as my eyes wandered…
…..
'Why do women wear such thin fabric?'
Rolling my eyes at her accusing glare, I grabbed my pliers.
"Before I proceed, I want to offer you one final opportunity to share any information voluntarily," I declared, carrying out the usual formality.
"Oh, shut up. Like I'm afraid of some nobody!"
'Yup, that's what I expected'
You would have made a good drinking partner for Tsunade with your fierce nature. Too bad you were caught before that day could come.
Oh well, just another regret to bear until the 'saviors' of the world grow up to spread peace the old-fashioned way.
Utilizing my shadow, it entwined with her left-hand fingers, leaving only her nails exposed to the surface.
"What are you doing?!" she exclaimed, trying to wrest her fingers from the sinister grip of the shadow, which tightened with each passing moment. My hand drew closer with the pliers to her left hand.
Opening the jaws of the pliers, I placed her index nail between them, securing it.
Snap!
"Mmmmph!" She bit her lip to resist the sharp, intense pain, but failed to control the tears that flowed down her face as the tender nail bed was now exposed to the rough atmosphere.
It was a bit bloody, but at least it didn't splatter outward.
As she continued to feel a burning sensation on her left-hand index finger, I moved on to the next finger.
Snap!
Stifling her cries after losing two nails, I placed the pliers on the table and carefully sat down.
It is important for her to feel pain at a time, or else she would be numbed to it pretty quickly.
Though looking into her eyes, I felt disappointment at her unyielding stare, which contrasted with the tears that couldn't stop overflowing.
Sighing, I stood and grabbed the pliers, moving closer to her left hand again.
Opening the jaws of the pliers, I placed her pinkie nail between them, securing it.
Anticipating the pain to be inflicted on her third finger, she closed her eyes, mentally bracing herself.
But torture would be stale if I did the same thing a third time, right?
Putting my right-hand index finger over her left-hand index finger, I deviously muttered, "Fire Style: Embers."
"Ahh!"
Breaking her silence with a scream, she desperately tried to break free from my shadow as her left-hand index nail bed was scorched, but to no avail.
After all, this shadow is far stronger than the steel used to forge weapons.
"Will you cooperate, or shall we continue?" I asked while she bore the excruciating burning pain.
Like a brave heroine, she gritted her teeth and formed a fist with her right hand, refusing to yield, though her tears told a different story.
'So it's a no...'
Sighing, without hesitation I placed my finger on her left pinkie.
"Fire Style: Embers."
This time she howled in pain, not because of the white flame from my fingertips, no, that would be too repetitive.
Rather, she screamed from the molten keratin burning her pinkie's nail bed.
I still find it ironic how my elemental affinity is fire, despite being burned to death in my previous life and having no synergy with my shadow.
People often misunderstand my affinity, thinking I have earth and lightning affinities due to how frequently I use them with and without conjunction with my shadow. But oh well, fire jutsu is still useful in my line of work.
Waiting for the keratin and her to cool down, I went back to finish the book after preparing materials for her next torture, which involved pouring gasoline on her right arm.
I was always an advocate for equality among men and women, so why would I suddenly discriminate between her two arms?
'Now, which page was I on again?' I thought as I flipped through the pages.
—------
Fun fact:·Nails are made of Keratin.
Author's Note: ·What would rate the torture scene from 1-5? I tried to make it different from last time while not making it long enough to be boring.
·Anyway are you interested to more of them? It felt it would be weird not to show.