The air between Shinki and Pakura was tense as they faced each other.
"I guess so," Shinki replied casually, leaning against a pillar. "I saw your team on my way to the camp, so I sent my puppet to capture you. As for your companions..."
"Did you kill them?" Pakura interrupted angrily, slamming her hand against the wooden bars of her cell. Her voice rose in fury as she glared at Shinki. "Why did you kill them? Why!"
Shinki blinked at her outburst, studying her seriously for a moment before shaking his head.
"I regret catching you now," he said bluntly. "You don't seem very bright."
"…"
Pakura froze.
"I don't seem bright?" she repeated, her tone incredulous.
"As for why I captured you," Shinki continued, ignoring her reaction, "I thought you had potential. You're supposedly a genius of the Sand Village's new generation. But now, I'm starting to think I overestimated you."
Pakura's face turned red with anger, but Shinki wasn't done.
"I don't know who's more talented between you and Rasa, but at least Rasa is smarter than you."
The statement stung. Shinki's words cut deep, referencing the tragic fate Pakura would one day meet because of Rasa's betrayal.
"I'm not stupid!" Pakura protested, her face flushed with humiliation.
"Really?" Shinki replied, his tone dripping with skepticism. "I'm not convinced."
Pakura's face darkened further, her anger boiling over.
"If you've captured me, just kill me already!" she shouted. "Do what you want, but stop trying to humiliate me!"
Shinki crouched down in front of her, his gaze level.
"Kill you? Why would I waste my efforts capturing you only to throw it all away?" he asked calmly. "And don't worry about your companions. After my puppet captured you, they didn't even try to save you. They didn't chase after us. Nothing."
"I don't believe you," Pakura said through gritted teeth. But her expression betrayed her unease.
"Don't believe me, then. Ignorance might be less painful for you," Shinki said with a smirk, standing up and walking away.
---
After leaving the cell, Shinki turned to the ninja on duty.
"Keep an eye on her," he instructed. "Treat her well. High-quality food, decent accommodations. As for the other prisoners we'll be bringing in, lock them up next to her. Treat them harshly—interrogate them frequently and use some psychological tactics."
The ninja looked confused. "Sir, are you sure about this disparity in treatment?"
"Absolutely. Follow my orders."
"Understood!"
The ninja hurried off to make the arrangements, and the next day, Pakura noticed a group of captured Sand Village ninjas being brought into the adjacent cell.
The conditions between her cell and theirs were starkly different. While Pakura's solitary confinement provided her with decent food and humane treatment, the prisoners next door were crammed into a small space, fed nothing but hard rations, and subjected to constant interrogations.
"Pakura! You're here too?" one of the captured ninjas, a senior named Li Luo, called out in shock.
Pakura hesitated before replying. "It's... a long story."
---
As the day wore on, the contrast between Pakura's situation and that of her comrades became glaringly obvious. When meals were distributed, Pakura received a well-balanced combination of meat, vegetables, and bread, while the prisoners next door received only stale, hardened rations.
The other ninjas exchanged uneasy glances.
"Why is her treatment so different?" one of them whispered.
"Do you think... they're trying to turn her?" another muttered darkly.
The seeds of doubt were sown, and Pakura could feel their accusing eyes on her.
---
Frustrated and furious, Pakura called out to the ninja on duty.
"Change my food! Give me the same as everyone else!" she demanded.
The ninja didn't even look up. "Your meals are delivered according to orders. Eat them or don't—your choice."
Pakura clenched her fists. She could feel her fellow villagers' distrust growing with every passing moment.
Shinki's strategy was clear: isolate her and create division within the Sand Village prisoners. Even if Pakura remained loyal, the others would begin to doubt her, and the effects of that doubt would linger long after the war.
As Pakura sat alone in her cell, staring at the untouched food in front of her, she realized she was caught in a web of manipulation.
Her reputation, her loyalty, and her very identity were all under siege.
>>>>>
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[Naruto: The Tale of an Otsutsuki]