Symbol of Power

Chapter 1

I was about to explode. Unbelievable. This woman was driving me to insanity. Clearly agitated I stomped out of Tsunades' office and headed towards the cafeteria.

"Big news!" I exclaimed excited. Everyone's attention was immediately on me. Maybe I raised my voice a tad too much. As quickly as I gained their attention they soon resumed what they were doing and I settled nonchalantly into the seat next to Ino, my best friend.

"Spill it! What did Tsunade-shishou say?" Her look told me, that she knew something rather unpleasant had occurred.

"I am to go to Hong Kong for a month! Starting the day after tomorrow! And Shishou deemed it appropriate to tell me two days before departure. I mean, it's not like I had plans for the upcoming weeks or something." I retorted and heaved a sigh, resigning myself to the fate Tsunade has chosen for me.

"Woah… that's pretty awesome! Why are you complaining? At least you get to see some places other than Tokyo Medical University Hospital." One of the nurses sitting with us commented.

"But what are you going to do there? Sightseeing?" my blonde friend asked me mockingly, obviously prying for more details.

Heaving another sigh I answered "In short Tsunade-sama is going to perform a pretty complicated surgery and I am going to assist. I skimmed through the file she gave me earlier and it doesn't look too good for the patient. It's a rare case of cancer. We're going to perform the new technique that she developed and of course we're going to stay a while longer to teach it."

"Forehead, why do you always get the good ones? I'm more than willing to switch places with you!"

"Well, it's because Sakura is a natural talent when it comes to complicated and exhausting surgeries." Seeing all the nurses swoon over him, I can only think of one man in this hospital to provoke this kind of reaction.

"Doctor Kimura." I greeted him as I slightly turned my head in his direction. Sai Kimura was my senior and… well, a very good acquaintance.

"Good morning, Sakura. I heard you are going to Hong Kong for a month?"

After I broke the news to everyone, I started to prepare for the one month stay which consisted of postponing gatherings, packing and studying the patient's file more precisely.

The flight and the surgery went off without a hitch. Our patient was recovering though it remains to be seen how successful we were in removing the tumor. For the remainder of the month we are going to exchange surgical techniques and also I am to occasionally help out at the emergency room.

"I'm off, Annie!" I called out to my new friend as I left the QE Hospital. I just ended my shift at the ER and was now heading towards my favorite restaurant to have dinner. It wasn't too far from the hospital away, so I decided to walk there while enjoying the cool evening breeze. I barely had time to go sightseeing, being a first year resident you had so much to learn. It was 8 p.m. already but Hong Kong streets are as busy and lively as ever. Finally I turned into a back road which was thankfully less crowded. Only scattered people here and there. It was thanks to my coworker Annie that I got to know of this little peaceful spot. I dare to say that this restaurant was one of the best I've ever been to. I had my usual noodle soup and left the place sated and content. Outside I was greeted by utter silence and an uncanny empty street. Well, it can't be too long before my cab arrives. Several minutes past and I grew impatient.

"Oh, hurry up!" I spoke to myself. That's when I saw someone rushing by at the end of the street. From the way he ran I could tell that he was injured. Cursing the doctor inside of me I hurried after him on instinct. "Mister!" I called out to him. But he was already too far ahead to notice me. Trying my best to speed up, but failing miserably thanks to my heels, I heard a loud bang and the man fell lifelessly to the ground. I came to an abrupt halt, not fully realizing what just happened. Was he SHOT? Blank horror overwhelmed me as I saw other men clothed fully in black approaching. Paralyzed by shock and fear I kept staring at the scene in front of me. Another shot followed. This time it was aimed directly at his head. Slowly it dawned on me, that I just witnessed a crime. The police. I need to call the police immediately! I hastily rummaged through my bag in search for my cellphone. Fast approaching footsteps alerted me that they were now coming for me.

"Hey, Miss!" a deep voice resounded. Oh great! Sakura why are you so stupid?

True it wasn't the best idea to attempt to call the police right in front of the culprits. And it was even worse running for your life wearing high heels! I needed to get out of here as fast as possible. Actually a lively street would do. Too bad I didn't really pay attention where I ran which resulted in me being completely lost and hunted by three ominous men. Wait, weren't there five men surrounding the victim? Okay, maybe the other two remained at the crime scene to get rid of the corpse. At least that's what I truly wanted to believe. I turned so many streets and they were still behind me. Why is this part of Hong Kong so empty at night? For a short moment they lost me and that's when I squeezed into gap between two buildings. Perfectly hidden by the shadows. More than happy that the three men ran past me. Catching my breath I quickly dialed the police. As I was about to answer, my phone was snatched from me and crushed beneath his foot. Dammit! I didn't consider that the light exuding from my phone would draw attention. I slowly lifted my eyes to his face and clearly saw, that it was one of the men from the crime scene earlier and he was clearly not in good mood. His hand pinned me effortless to the wall and soon my sight got blurry.

"Miss? I guess you're coming with me now." His tone was harsh and forceful. The last thing I saw was his slight grin. Then everything blackened.

The humming noise of an engine. That's what I first noticed. The constant and low sound grew louder by the second. And I became aware of my body again. It felt incredibly heavy. I must have been injected with some sort of narcotic. Knowing the after-effects of said medication, there was nothing I could do for a while. I kept my eyes shut on purpose, not wanting to draw any attention to me. Stay calm and analyze your surroundings. Sharpening my sense of hearing I could make out faint voices. Oh, right. I have been kidnapped for witnessing a homicide. Fear and panic slowly spread throughout my body. Am I going to DIE? Judging from the cold metal that was beneath me and the slight vibration I must be in a truck or something similar to it. Though I could only hear two voices, I am sure that there must have been at least three to five people with me. As I regained more and more awareness of my body, I realized why my body felt so heavy earlier. Aside from the effects of the narcotic I was bound at my wrists and ankles. The chances of freeing myself from here are now as good as non-existent. Why did I follow? I should have stayed where I was, waiting for my cab. I was beyond scared. I was going to be killed and dumped into the ocean. No one is ever going to find me. My parents will never forgive me for being so stupid and dying like this. Silent tears streamed down my face.

"Oi! I think she's awake."

As I opened my eyes I noticed, that one of the men was beside me. "Please, let me go home. I promise I'm not going to tell anyone. " I could hear them all laugh at the same time.

"Sweetie, your promise is not very convincing. We've got other plans for you." The dark haired man beside me spoke while caressing my cheeks, wiping away my tears. Disgusted by his touch I turned my face away. Unfortunately his hand then trailed down my body caressing my outline. A shocked cry escaped me while he crossed the line of decency.

"Sasuke, behave." A deep voice from the front seats resonated. His hand stilled at my upper thigh, squeezing it before he fully removed his hand.

I struggled to sit up and mustered all my courage to say "Are you going to kill me too?" Again, tears pricked my eyes.

"We'll know that in a minute." The redhead in front of me answered. "Say, what kind of doctor are you?"

How did he know I was a doctor? As if he sensed my silent question he continued. "You carry a lot of pictures inside your purse."

Growing impatient the so-called Sasuke prompted me. "You've been asked a question!" I flinched from his harsh tone and aggressiveness. I recognized him. The one who captured me. Bastard.

"General Surgery." I quickly answered.

He seemed to be noting it down on his tablet. Why would he do that?

"Sasori, are you done compiling all the necessary information? We're almost there." The driver informed him.

"Yes, I got everything we need."

I became anxious not knowing what's going to happen next. Reaching the destination, the truck stopped and one of them opened the side door. The artificial light from the outside blinded me but I could clearly see that there was a really tall and muscular person standing in front of. He had spiky hair and his eyes reminded me of those of a fish. Within an instant Sasuke put a black cotton bag over my head and I felt the muscular guy reaching for me. He jerked me out of the car and threw me in one swift motion over his shoulder, like I weighed nothing more than a pillow. I protested loudly and earned a hard hit on my behind. Everyone else was laughing loudly. I felt humiliated and wanted to scream. But where would it get me? Probably into more trouble. I silently underwent their rough treatment. We walked for a while and all I could distinguish was that we weren't outside anymore. Then I fell hard on my behind causing me to squeal. It seemed that I was finally put down. The floor was covered by a carpet, a very soft one. It was eerily quiet and even though I couldn't see anything I could feel eyes scrutinizing me.

Finally a very deep and masculine voice broke the silence. "Is it done?"

"Yes. He was successfully tracked down and eliminated. We got rid of him and no traces were left behind. Except for this one." Sasuke's voice hinted at me. I stiffened. Hearing him talk about what happened earlier like it was everyday business made me even more scared. I'm done for, for sure. That's it. They'll going to dispose of me in a second and I'll never see my family and friends again. There are still so many things I wanted to do. I sobbed ceaselessly. The cotton bag was ripped from my head and I could see a man with dark, long and spikey hair sitting behind a desk. His cold hard eyes on me. Then I heard the redhead's voice.

"Haruno, Sakura. Female. 26 years old. Single. No children. Japanese nationality. First year resident and intends to specialize in general surgery. Exceptionally skilled in surgery. Works temporarily in Queen Elizabeth Hospital. Main employer is Tokyo Medical University Hospital. Family located in Nagoya, Japan. No siblings."

To say I was utterly amazed by how much he knew about me would be an understatement. That's what he was doing earlier in the truck. A minute passed while I was gaping at him.

"Interesting." Was all that the man behind the desk said.

"Keep or kill, Madara-sama?" Sasuke inquired. My eyes darted immediately to the man in charge.

"Please-" I was instantly backhanded by Sasuke. "You'll only talk when you're requested to, understood?" Looking down, I nodded silently. "Good." This Madara-guy eyed everything with great interest but said nothing. I didn't like the way he looked at me. Not at all.

"Very well. It depends on how convincing she can be tonight. You'll know where to bring her. Now leave." All five men bowed to him and then dragged me outside.

The big guy was carrying me again. His shoulder was piercing through my abdomen. All in all the situation didn't look too good for me.

"Kisame, Sasori. You two take care of her." With that they split up.

"Where are you taking me? Please let me go! I didn't see anything! I swear!" Again a large hand landed on my behind.

"Nice try, doctor Haruno."

Then the redhead spoke. "If you want to live, I advise you to do anything Madara-sama wants you to do. It would be a waste if I had to kill you."

"True, we could really use someone as skilled like you." The bulky one agreed. I think his name was Kisame. What a fitting name. A demonic shark. That's exactly how he looked like.

"What are you guys? Killing and kidnapping people without shame." Kisame laughed out really loud.

"Sasori, did you hear that? Shame."

Unmoved he answered. "Yakuza." Fuck. I really got into some really deep trouble.

"Sweetie, we're the 'good' ones. We're killing those fucking bastards from the Triad."

Sasori marched forward and opened a huge door with a scan of his fingerprint. As we entered the room I noticed the extravagant arrangements. Modern, beautiful and expensive. I was pulled out of my thoughts when I was thrown onto the huge king sized bed. Both of them now freed me from my restraints and a pleasant feeling rushed through me when I finally could move again. Of course I immediately intended to get out of there, but Kisame was faster than I was. He pinned me down on the bed and Sasori was approaching me with a SRYNGE in his hand.

"Remember what I told you? Do your best to please Madara-sama or you'll end up in a garbage bag."

With that my lids grew heavy and body fully relaxed and I fell unintendedly asleep.

Thank you for reading!

And I hope my english was acceptable. It is my first time writing a fanfiction in english.

So feel free to look for mistakes :P

Please let me know how you liked it and what could have been better!