damned_institute | Nightshift 30: Sun Room

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Nightshift 30: Sun Room

[[from here]]

He wasn't sure just what awaited him as the boy with pale hair and glowing eyes dragged him across the tiled floor, but he was so bruised and beaten after their one-sided fight that he couldn't do much to stop it. After hearing the rumors about what happened to patients here, he didn't have high hopes. The world stopped spinning for a moment when they reached the railing. Was he just going to be left on the floor here?

It didn't look like he'd be quite that lucky. The boy floated into the air, carrying him along like a sack of potatoes before tossing him unceremoniously into the Sun Room below. He fell like a rag doll and hit one of the tables on the way down. He heard as much as felt the cracking of bones as he landed in a heap on the floor. His upper arm felt strangely warm on the left side, only to realize it was because the bone had broken through the skin. Yuuhi bit back a cry of pain, wishing the fall had knocked him unconscious too, then at least he wouldn't have to feel the pain for a while.

His flashlight was gone, lost in the scuffle, and he looked nervously into the darkness, well aware of what easy prey he would be. He had to move, before someone or something caught the scent of his blood.

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Takaya seemed to want to help the injured man. That was an unnecessary and foolish move, even if the two were allies -- Takaya would likely not be able to move him. Besides, wasting time to help another would distract them from their own goals. It was an action motivated by weak emotion rather than practical purposes. Yes, it looked like Takaya would be too weak to be of use against an enemy. Itachi would fight this battle alone.

The enemy did not look very threatening, in fact looked physically weak, but Itachi knew appearances could be deceiving. While the creature probably had physical weak spots, this did not mean it was short on power. Itachi steadied his stance and slowly began to step forward, constantly ready for an attack. The monster did not seem outwardly aggressive, but a direct movement towards it would probably provoke defensive action. Itachi watched every movement of the creature carefully, all the while walking nearer.

Takaya frowned harder, something moving in his mind again, trying to offer advice, hints, clues. The stubborn teenager was having none of it.

"I'm going to try to help you," he said, voice slightly shaking, though not from fear. He was struggling to remain in control. For whatever reason, his hold on his own mind seemed weaker at night. Maybe it was because ....

"I don't think we're in anymore danger." The ... thing hadn't attacked. It was just circling them. He tried to work out how bad the blond guy was before he tried anything.

There were far too many things going on for his fuzzy mind to sort through. It was hard enough to concentrate on the boy who was talking with him. He was in too much pain, too tired, and too weak to argue though. "I'll... be fine," he assured the young man, though the blood he could taste in the back of his mouth and the shattered bone in his arm told a different story.

The second Itachi took a step forward his eyes flashed, blue and lamp-like. In the blink of an eye, leaving several after-images as he moved, he stopped in front of the doors, a good ten or fifteen paces from Itachi.

He must protect the target area he was assigned to. Must. Without fail. No holds barred. Even if he was ripped into a thousand data pieces, he would guard his territory. He reached behind him and drew two dagger-like blades.

His arms snapped into an x--formation in front of his body, one blade in each hand. Suddenly, there was a metallic grating noise and a tiny after-ring, almost like the blade of a guillotine singing after it had fallen. The singular blades now had brothers—-each blade now resembled a wicked-looking claw, designed to tear into its enemy without mercy with each of its three blades.

He tilted his head back, the bottom half of his face now visible, and he flashed a crazed, sharp-toothed grin at his victim, as though daring him to come any closer. A deranged, wheezy laugh escaped his still lips and he waited. Waited to see if the target came.

Aggressors must be persuaded--that part of his programming was clear.

Ah. The enemy had signaled a desire to fight. He had not yet taken offensive action, though. Waiting for Itachi to engage him? Normally, Itachi did not attack until the opponent made the first move, but it was rather obvious that Itachi could not move past to the courtyard without a fight.

Those bladed weapons were a problem, though. Itachi had nothing with which to counter them, so he would have to make do with evasion. But considering how easily the orderlies had subdued him in the cafeteria that morning, he knew he might have difficulty analyzing and following an opponent's movement. He was not used to fighting without the Sharingan, let alone any chakra at all -- he had confidence in his power still, but he should not overestimate his ability to evade an attack at close quarters. Therefore, he should not rush the opponent -- at least while the opponent was ready.

Itachi locked eyes with the grinning monster for a moment. If he had possession of all his abilities, he could end it with just that action alone. This would be interesting.

With a movement faster than the human eye could follow, two of the pens tucked into his waistband were between his fingers. Then they were flying on twin trajectories, between the blades, straight to the enemy's eyes. Counting on the opponent's distraction, Itachi followed the pens with his own body in a flying kick, keeping careful watch of the movement of the blades.

Takaya and Kagetora both winced internally when Itachi attacked. That was stupid.

However, using the moment of distraction, Takaya was faced with another attempt at his control. Looking back at Fai, he had to admit that he didn't know what to do, and grudgingly allowed some of his mind access to his body.

His eyes hardened and he quickly stripped off his shirt, tearing it into more useful parts. Assessing the state of the man he did not know took much less time for someone that had seen hundreds of years of trauma and wounds. His hands were steady as was his voice.

"Keep listening to my voice," he said as he worked. "Stay awake with me." He took a breath and then bent down, fixing the arm in place with his hands and keeping it there with a strip of his shirt. That had to have hurt like hell, but either the blond would scream or pass out, or both. Either way, he had to keep first aid going. Without power, he couldn't do anything but the most basic.

Yuuhi tried to stay focused on the boy speaking to him and not on the sound of fighting nearby. Staying awake was the last thing he wanted to do at the moment, but put forth an effort. It came to a sudden halt, however, when the boy pulled his arm back into place. Yuuhi was familiar with pain, but this was so intense and so sudden that he couldn't help but cry out, try as he might to stifle it.

"I don't think I can," he said, defeat apparent in his voice. The pain had been like a blinding white light and all he wanted to do now was escape it, whatever the means.

Unfortunately for Itachi, his eyes were far from human. The pens moved towards him agonizingly slow, almost as though they were moving through wet cement.

He raised one of his blades and knocked the pens away with a sweep that couldn't have been possible for anything human. It looked like it would have dislocated a normal shoulder, but he remained standing in front of the doors. The move hadn't even caused him to shift any of his body weight.

He lowered his blade and stood with one blade at each side. For all intents and purposes, he wide open to attack, but one eye still focused on Itachi with frightening intensity. Another deathly cold wheeze left the gap between those sharp teeth as the eye quivered in its socket. If the target showed any more signs of aggression, he might have to get serious.

Itachi had already launched into a kick as the opponent knocked the pens away. He had rather been expecting that. At least he knew the enemy was capable of that much. The creature was fast, impossibly fast -- maybe as fast as Itachi.

But even as he thought thus, Itachi felt a strange sensation in his limbs. He knew he would be slower without chakra to draw upon, but he felt like he was dragging his legs through water. Incomprehensible. His body was not responding in any way befitting a shinobi of Itachi's abilities.

In midair, Itachi saw the enemy draw both blades to his sides. One of the most dangerous positions of all. Deceptively vulnerable, but both those blades could scythe upwards in a split second, catching an attacking limb between them. And Itachi's foot was headed straight towards the opponent's chest. Fast as lightning, though with his limbs still dragging, Itachi twisted in midair, trying to redirect his kick to the enemy's legs in a sweeping motion.

Takaya frowned, still working quickly. "I need you to stay awake. I will force you if I have to." His tone was nothing like the confused teenager from before. It was both a threat and a command.

Itachi was keeping both himself and the ... other thing occupied, so he went on with his attempts at aid. The arm immobilized, it was time to focus on other things. The bleeding and the likely internal hemmoraging. "If I assist you, can you move?" Moving someone this badly hurt was never a good idea, but if it meant life or death...

The boy's tone changed and Yuuhi knitted his brow in worry. He wasn't sure if the other could make good on his threats, but he wasn't inclined to argue the point. A startled "ah-" was all he managed.

He honestly wasn't sure if he could walk or not. His legs were badly burned and bruised from the blasts, possibly broken. He'd try though, even if it wasn't much. "I don't... know," he said with some hesitation. "I can give it... a shot," he tried to give the boy a reassuring smile, but it wasn't easy.

Itachi's kick followed through, but not in the way the ninja had expected. One minute the target was standing still, and the next, he had moved backwards to clear the kick. There was no doubt that he was fast--faster than any patient in the building, perhaps.

He gave an aggressive and animal-like battle shriek and launched his first attack. Swiping with lightning-fast reflex in an inhuman pattern, he lashed out in a series of thirteen swipes, all aimed at Itachi. They were light, but combined they could do some serious damage.

That should be enough, his program told him. If you use any more of your skills, you might kill him. Killing him was not the desired outcome, it was the opposite. He leapt back lightly after finishing his attack, resuming his nonchalant posture in front of the door.

Itachi's kick swept straight towards the opponent's legs. Then, suddenly, the legs were no longer there. Itachi did not adjust to the enemy's position in time, just barely catching his balance as he landed a few feet in front of the creature.

He did not adjust to the enemy's position in time? Itachi tried to understand what just happened. Why? He had read the enemy's movement, but not fast enough; he had commanded his body to respond, but not fast enough. That must have been what had happened, as strange as it was.

Then, just as suddenly as the monster had dodged, it screamed and rushed at Itachi, the blades swiping out in a complex attack. The pattern of movement was unusual, but Itachi would be able to read it and dodge -- he could not read it. Only survival instinct prevented him from freezing in shock.

He knew intellectually that he could not access the Sharingan, but that was different from actual empirical knowledge of what it felt like to fight without it. The blades were moving, and he could not tell where. Furthermore, he could barely even see the movement with his ordinary eyes, damaged as they were. This physical awareness of the constraints on his potential was inconceivable. Itachi had had the Sharingan since he was eight years old, and he suddenly felt like he did not know who he was, whose body he was fighting with.

Instinct pressed him on again, body forced to move by the whispering sound of blades and the immediate knowledge of battle ingrained into his subconcious. He dodged a number of strikes without even thinking, but he felt the blade slice into his shoulder, his arms, his thigh, his sides, again and again.

Blood. Pain. As the opponent stepped back and resumed his original position, Itachi mechanically registered his wounds (shallow, won't suffer much blood loss if they're bound soon). The realisation of what they meant was almost too much. This was inconceivable. Itachi stood, rooted in shock, staring at the enemy.

Rooted in shock? Inconceivable as well. Why was he not handling the situation? Itachi blinked a little, clearing his head. The enemy was faster than Itachi. Whatever that meant could be dealt with later. As for now, winning was probably unlikely. Only someone like Naruto-kun would continue trying at this point. Which left the option of retreat. Because the enemy did not attack unless Itachi did, it was not on the offensive, but because it did not retreat when Itachi was wounded, it was not on the defensive either. It was probably just trying to impede his progress. Which was infuriating, because Itachi had to leave this place tonight. There had to be some other way.

"Takaya-san." He said, neither taking his eyes from the enemy nor caring what Takaya was busy with at the moment. "Is there another way into the courtyard? Or perhaps one of the other outside areas on the map?"

Good. Takaya wasn't sure that Kagetora could make good on the threats, but if it startled this guy enough, then it worked for him. "Good," he went on. "Don't move yet. And stay with me." Tightly binding off the lacerations he found, Takaya mostly ignored the fight behind him. It wasn't long anyway.

At Itachi's question, his head tiwtched to the side, but he didn't look at the other dark-haired guy. The honorific was not welcome and his tone turned slightly harsh. "From where we are now, go back out, turn left and go down the first hallway you see." Being stuck here for so long had it's advantages... "Moving around while bleeding is fucking stupid," he pointed out as he bound the blind's wounds, careful to avoid discolored spots and keeping an eye on his breathing. The wheezy guy didn't seem interested in either himself or the bleeding guy, so he wasn't worried about that.

Left with no other choice but to comply, Yuuhi did as he was told and didn't move, in spite of how roughly and tightly the boy started to bind his wounds. There were a couple of winces and a few sharp intakes of breath through the procedure, but he did his best to bear it. Someone like Inoue would probably be a great help about now, he thought, with no small amount of irony. Kurogane was probably going to be upset too, if and when he found out about this mess. In his mind he was already constructing excuses and other ways around giving the real answers. Kurogane had hit far too close to home earlier today and he'd no intention of letting the man pry any further.

He watched Itachi's emotions flash across his face, but no smug grin or signs of victory crossed across his own features. The aggressor had been injured, and the non-aggressors were making no plan to try to get past him.

But he had to follow up.

Letting another grating wheeze fall from his lips, he took a few shaky steps forward, blades at the ready. His eye was focused on Itachi with such intensity, it almost conveyed a desire to cut into Itachi again.

He continued advancing at a steady pace, ready to persuade the targets to vacate the target area if any further threats were detected.

Takaya gave him instructions as if he was not planning on going with. So he was going to waste his time helping the injured man. Well, he was obviously not much use anyway, though in light of recent events Itachi was sure it would be better not to be alone. He had the maps, though. And he was leaving now.

Itachi saw the opponent advancing slowly, and decided to make it clear he was retreating. The murderous intent in the creature's eyes meant little, but this was a battle it would be wiser to step away from. Itachi kept his gaze on the enemy passively, slowly backing away, around Takaya and the casualty. He paused very briefly, even with Takaya but still looking at the opponent.

"Thank you." The words were brief and cold, an exercise in formality in case cooperation would be needed in the future. With that, Itachi backed out of the door and into the hallway, waiting a moment to see if the creature was going to pursue him.

Takaya didn't even acknowledge Itachi. There was no point. If he was going to take off, fine. He'd see him in the morning anyway.

"Stay with me," he repeated to the bleeding blond man. "We might have to run... I think I can carry you." Not too far, but maybe far enough. He turned to better be able to keep his eyes on the approching blue-eyes thing.

Run? He didn't think he could do anything that quickly, but he wasn't in any position to disagree. He just felt badly for troubling the youth so much. He gave a slow nod and took a breath in a feeble attempt to prepare himself.

"Sorry," he said in a pained voice, "for... the trouble."

He stopped his advance when Itachi left the room. The aggressor had left. The area was clear.

No, it wasn't.

The other two targets. They hadn't left yet. One was injured, another was not. They both were injured. No, they were fine. They were trying to get past him. They weren't attacking him--yes they were. Defend, he had to defend his target area. Non-patients couldn't be here, patients couldn't be here. Non-aggressors must be persuaded, aggressors left alone. His switches kept flipping back and forth. He was incomplete and flawed, after all.

Making a decision, he turned his gaze slowly on Yuuhi and Takaya. There they were--the aggressors. He let out another wheeze and approached them directly, eye focused on the two, unblinking.

((Okay, I'm assuming that Irachi is gone, if this is not the case, let me know and I'll delete.))

Takaya tensed up as the one-eyed weirdo thing started towards them. "You still with me?" He shifted up to his feet, though he stayed crouching low, the better to scoop up the blond guy and run. With luck ~~like he'd ever had any of that~~, they could get to somewhere safe without too many issues.

The boy's friend had left already and it appeared that the doll in front of them was fixed on a new target. Yuuhi's gaze was drawn to it, eyes wide and worried though he tried not to show it.

"I-" he started, not sure how to answer the question. There were much more important things to be worrying about. "-he's coming."

Fear. The two targets were scared. There must have been a reason they were scared. Aggressors. They were aggressors.

They were running. Non-aggressors. He was slowly losing what little control he'd had over his program. Yuuhi and Takaya kept flickering back and forth--zero, one, zero, one, one, one, zero, one.

He let out another wail, this one sounding frustrated and angry. Slowly, he raised one of his blades and swiped it at Takaya and Yuuhi. Bits of the carpet seemed to fly off the floor by the sheer force of the swipe, but once the explosive noise ceased, the reality was much different.

Patches of carpet were sprouting out of the walls, and bits of linoleum spotted the floor like puddles. He staggered back, shifting the blades in his hands as though preparing for another attack. His breathing was getting more ragged and wheezy, as though he were trying hard to remain standing after running a mile in two minutes. His head snapped up, his grin wider than ever, and he charged.

Nightshift 30: Sun Room

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