Alright, fourth chapter is up! This is a bit shorter than the last, and after such a long time, you deserve more, but I'm still in the planning process, so the updates will be slow.

–

Solid Stone... There was that name again. The Sandaime Hokage sat behind his desk, puffing on his pipe in thought. Sasuke had already left, and was probably out beating criminals to a pulp as usual. Usually, the Sandaime would spend his evenings worrying about Sasuke, but now, someone else was on his mind.

Uzumaki Naruto.

Had he survived being thrown into Solid Stone? If he had, why hadn't he come home now that the prison was destroyed? Maybe he no longer remembered his home? Or maybe... Maybe he really was dead?

No, he couldn't think like that. Naruto was an Uzumaki, and they were amazing at surviving. He wouldn't be surprised if there were still some Uzumakis left out there in the world. They had a knack for surviving.

But what could have happened to Naruto, after he was sent to Solid Stone? The Sandaime couldn't help but worry when a shiver went down his spine as he thought about this.

–

"What happened to you, Bane?" Anko asked as she sat in Bane's office, tied to the same chair as before, having been carried into the office by two grumpy-looking men. "What made you into the man you are today?"

She had to get him talking, get him to warm up to her. If she lent a sympathetic ear, maybe he'd take a liking to her, and would ensure she could get home without any injuries.

"I told you that if you found out about the old me, you'd never be able to leave," Bane said simply, looking up from the papers on his desk. For a musclebound brute, he sure seemed awfully smart, smarter than any dumb muscle Anko had ever met. He carried himself like some dumb muscle, but the way he talked, the way he acted, it was all different. He spoke like someone with enough IQ to rival the Sandaime Hokage.

"Maybe I don't want to leave?" Anko suggested, tilting her head to the side with a smirk on her face. "Maybe I want to stay and find out more about you?"

Bane stared at Anko for a few moments. Then, he chuckled. "Expect me to believe that?"

Anko shrugged as best she could. "Worth a try, no?" Bane shrugged as well, then went back to reading through the documents. Anko sat there silently for a while. Then, she cleared her throat. "Um, did you need me for something?"

"Yes, I would like to know your opinion of Konoha," Bane said without looking up.

"Why would you want to know that?" Anko asked, getting another shrug from Bane.

"I just want to know if you love it as little as it loves you."

"Little?" Anko asked, and Bane nodded.

"Yes, little," he said and reached into his desk. He took out a scroll and set it down on the desk, staring at Anko. Or at least she thought he did. It was a little hard to tell with the reflective lenses on the mask.

"What's that?"

"That's an execution order, signed by the Sandaime Hokage," Bane said simply, unrolling the scroll so that Anko could read it, her eyes widening when she did. The scroll spoke of Anko, and how the ANBU who were assigned to watch her (she didn't know she had anyone watching her) were to execute Anko on the spot if her Curse Seal showed any sign of going out of control. Anko tried to convince herself that this scroll was a fake, but if it was, then it was a very, very good fake, considering that it even had the Sandaime's seal on it. But why would he...?

"Konoha is rotting," Bane said. "The Sandaime Hokage is no longer anything more than a figurehead. The Council holds all the power. The Sandaime has lost his will to fight, and for that, he must be punished. Konoha is no longer any more than a shell of what it once was, and must be purged."

Anko was still staring in shock at the scroll, and Bane got up from his chair, moving around the desk to stand next to Anko, staring down at her.

"From me, you will never get anything other than the truth. From Konoha, you will get lies, glares, and hatred. I know what it was like for you at the orphanage, Anko. Now, I'm offering you an escape from Konoha, a way out of the corruption, and into my world, the world of an enemy of Konoha. Think about this offer. If you join me, you will get more than you could ever dream of."

With that, Bane moved to the door, knocking twice. The door opened, and the two dumb brutes came in, picking up the numb Anko's chair with her in it, before leaving.

–

When Anko was next brought in to Bane's office, she received some shocking news.

"I'm... being released?" she asked in shock, to which Bane nodded. "But... what about the information I've found? Doesn't that worry you?"

"You speak as if you have information that I haven't willingly given you," Bane said simply as one of the two dumb brutes untied Anko. "I will release you, because I want the Sandaime Hokage to know where I am. I want him to know my name. I dare him to come find me. I dare him to send his supposedly powerful ninja. I will break the lot of them."

Anko gulped, slowly getting out of the chair as Bane walked around the desk to stand in front of her, looking down at her.

"But then... I don't think you will reveal my location to the Hokage."

"Oh yeah?" Anko asked. "Why wouldn't I?"

"Because you know what he's like now. You know what he's capable of, and you don't trust him the way you once did," Bane said simply, making Anko's eyes widen. "You are all too easy to read, Anko-san. Now, go back to Konoha. If you are interested in joining me, simply put an X on your door. I'll find out."

Anko gulped as she was led out of the room by the two dumb brutes. Bane was left staring at the door as it closed, and Zabuza came out of the shadows in one of the corners of the office.

"Do you really think she won't give up your position?"

"If she does, she's signing her death warrant, and she is not so stupid as to do so," Bane said, his hands behind his back. He tilted his head back and stared up at the ceiling. "Can you feel it, Zabuza?"

Zabuza nodded as he stared at the door. "The fire rises."

And so, three days later found Anko standing in the Sandaime's office, with Sasuke standing off to the side, sitting in on the meeting.

"His name is Bane, and he was the man who released the Correctional Facility inmates," she told the old man, who thoughtfully puffed on his pipe. Anko took this moment to ponder everything she had learned. Should she tell the old man? Could she?

"Bane..." the Sandaime mumbled. "That name somehow seems familiar to me... yet so foreign at the same time."

"Did you learn anything else?" Sasuke asked in his usual no-nonsense tone of voice.

"Not much. I know now that he's from Konoha, I know that for certain. I observed him in the street, and listened in on a conversation he had with one of his underlings," Anko lied, not really knowing why she did so. "He holds a serious grudge against you for some reason, Hokage-sama."

"Does he indeed?" the Sandaime asked. "You never found out where he is hiding out?"

"Somewhere in Wave, I know that much, but I couldn't find out anything else."

"Very good, Anko, at least we found out his name," the Sandaime said, nodding. Anko gave a bow, before disappearing in a puff of smoke.

As soon as she got home, Anko stopped at her front door and gulped. The Sandaime, the man who seemed to love everyone in the village, had approved an order to have her killed should her Curse Seal go haywire... She reached into the pocket of her coat and fished out a piece of white chalk. She took a deep breath, then pocketed the chalk again, before heading inside.

The next day, a small X could be seen drawn on her front door...

–

Three days later, Uchiha Sasuke was hopping from roof to roof, his mind on other matters than the petty crimes in Konoha. His mind was on this Bane character, who seemed to have a great grudge against Konoha.

But why?

That was the question, wasn't it? Why did Bane have such a grudge? Had Konoha done something to him in the past? Was he a foreigner who had been wronged? And what was Bane's interest in Solid Stone? All the pieces were connected, he just knew it... but how? How were they connected?

Something caught Sasuke's eye, and he dropped from the roof he was on, only to see something that made his eyes widen.

Standing in the middle of the street, his arms crossed, was none other than Bane, and Sasuke had to admit that Anko's description of him being big hadn't done the man justice. He was huge!

"Uchiha Sasuke, I've been looking for you," Bane said as he uncrossed his arms, his hand going for a dial on the back of his left hand, something that made Sasuke raise an eyebrow.

"You must be Bane," Sasuke said, and the man chuckled, tilting his head to the side, which caused his neck to let out several loud cracks.

"I see Mitarashi Anko-san was good enough to tell you my name. However, from the lack of ninjas attacking in the last few days, I take it she never revealed my location to you?"

Sasuke's eyes widened again in surprise. Anko knew where the man was located? But...

"No doubt, she told you that she didn't know where my hideout is? For that, I am grateful."

"Shouldn't have told me that," Sasuke said, taking a fighting stance. "Another prisoner for the Correctional Facility."

"Oh, but you won't get the chance to tell anyone of Anko's betrayal."

"Won't I?"

"No, you will be much to busy struggling for your life to do any such thing, I'm afraid, Sasuke-san," Bane said simply. Then, he turned the dial.

A green liquid started to pump into Bane's head, and the man started growing. His muscles bulged to an incredible size, and his body itself grew a foot, a foot and a half.

But a body like that, there was no way he'd have enough speed to-

Sasuke's eyes widened, as Bane had already closed the distance between them and thrown a punch at him. Sasuke barely dodged, and countered with a punch to the gut, only for his eyes to widen again, this time in pain, as it felt like punching steel.

"And so we start off with underestimation..." Bane said, his hand closing around Sasuke's throat and lifting him into the air. Then, he pulled his free hand back and slugged Sasuke in the gut.

Sasuke spat saliva as all the air in his lungs were forcefully expelled, and as he gasped, he was once more punched, this time in the face, which sent him flying, landing with a thud in the dirt and skidding a good ten feet.

"You are used to the petty criminals of Konoha, and therefore expect me to be the same," Bane said, slowly walking toward Sasuke, who flipped to his feet. "Fight me like a ninja."

Sasuke gritted his teeth and charged at Bane with a flurry of attacks, all of which were easily blocked. Bane caught the last punch, staring down at Sasuke.

"I confess myself disappointed, Uchiha Sasuke-san," he said, before viciously beating Sasuke into the ground. He grabbed Sasuke by the throat again and lifted him into the air. "You fight like a man with nothing to lose. But you see, everyone has something to lose, and when you realize that... I will break you."

A kunai appeared in Sasuke's hand, and he slashed toward the tube sticking out of the back of Bane's head, but Bane's free hand easily caught it, and he tilted his head to the side.

"Going for the Venom, how predictable," he said, then headbutted Sasuke in the face. He squeezed Sasuke's wrist, making him cry out in pain as a loud snap echoed through the dark street. "Observe, Sasuke... As I destroy your world..."

Bane raised his arm, and then choke-slammed Sasuke into the ground. Then, he put his free hand in a half-Ram seal. Sasuke's eyes widened. What was he going to do?

His answer came when a series of massive explosions rocked Konoha, coming from the south. Bane let go of Sasuke and backed off, before spreading his arms out, laughing.

"Your precious Uchiha Quarter!" he said, and it was all too obvious to Sasuke that the man was grinning underneath that infernal mask of his. Sasuke saw red.

"NO!" he roared as he shot to his feet, attacking Bane with another flurry of attacks, these ones packing even more power than before, but Bane just laughed as he blocked each attack, before countering, slugging Sasuke in the face with enough force to daze him, causing him to collapse to his knees, gasping.

"I was wondering what would break first," Bane said, grasping the back of Sasuke's neck and hoisting him in the air, holding him by his neck and the back of his pants, "your spirit... or... your body!" he said, pulling Sasuke down and slamming Sasuke's back against his knee, making Sasuke cry out in pain once more.

"Broken..." Bane said as Sasuke rolled off his knee, straightening up. "...and done..."

–

Sasuke's eyes snapped open, and he found himself lying on a cot at the bottom of what seemed like a deep, wide well. It was so deep that Sasuke could hardly even see the light at the top of the well, even though it was wide enough to fit at least ten people, maybe even fifteen.

His back hurt something fierce, as did his wrist, and when he looked to the side, he saw none other than Bane sitting on a stool, now back to his normal size.

"Why..." Sasuke gulped, as talking hurt. "Why didn't you just... kill me?"

"You don't fear death," Bane said simply. "You crave it. Your punishment must be more severe."

"Punishment?" Sasuke asked, and Bane nodded.

"For years now, you have served Konoha to the best of your abilities, ridding its streets of the grimmer aspects of human nature. Your punishment is for postponing the inevitable destruction of Konoha."

"So... Torture, then?" Sasuke asked through gritted teeth.

"Yes. But not of your body... of your soul."

"Where am I?"

"Where indeed?" Bane asked, and gestured for the floor. Sasuke painfully turned his head, and saw that it was covered in skeletons, all of the bodies broken in several places. "Gatou, of the Gatou Shipping Company, had this well built. He would throw the more uncooperative villagers down here. Why, you may ask? Hope. Every man who has ended up here has looked up to the light and imagined climbing to freedom. So easy... So simple... And like shipwrecked men turning to sea water from uncontrollable thirst, they have all died trying. There can be no true despair without hope, and so, while you glimpse up at the light, and pray to be able to climb out of here, just imagine what I will be doing to Konoha while you are away."

Sasuke gritted his teeth again, and Bane stood up, gesturing for a waterskin and a felt sack.

"Food, and water, to keep you from dying too early. Goodbye, Uchiha Sasuke-san."

With that, Bane started the long climb up the well, Sasuke watching him the whole time, trying to memorize which path Bane took. After all, rocks solid enough to hold Bane had to be solid enough to hold Sasuke.

As Bane came out of the well, he found Zouri and Waraji waiting for him.

"Inform the men. Operation Cleansing Fire begins," he told the two samurai, who nodded and ran off.

Bane cracked his knuckles as he looked back at the well.

"Have a good time, Sasuke-san."

Down in the well, Sasuke had managed to roll over and reached behind him to locate where his spine had been broken. One of the vertebrae was protruding from his back. How was he supposed to put it back in place?

Rolling, Sasuke painfully slammed his back down on the edge of the cot, screaming in pain as the vertebrae was slammed back into place. Then, he squirmed back onto the cot. He needed to lay straight for a long time, and get his spine back into order. Then, he'd climb out of there and find Bane...

–

Meanwhile, Bane was sitting in his office, with Anko sitting across from him, looking a bit uncomfortable.

"No doubt, you feel some shame for betraying your fellow Konoha citizens the way you did," Bane said, and Anko nodded. "Don't feel shame, my dear. Feel pride. You are about to take part in something that will go down in history as the greatest cleansing fire in the world. You will help eradicate the five major Hidden Villages."

"About that, I thought you only hated Konoha," Anko said, looking a little confused. "Why destroy all the other villages?"

"They are all the same. They are all corrupt, and eradicating the five major villages will result in a power vacuum. The minor villages will start warring to become the new major villages, and that is when I will strike at them as well. No Hidden Village will remain standing by the time I am done."

–

So, what do you think? Please leave a review letting me know!