Experiment

The girl sprinted through the forest, glancing back over her shoulder every other yard. Her bare feet smashed into rocks, undergrowth, puddles, and thorns all alike. //It's was odd how your perspective can change.// she thought to herself, barely feeling the cuts on her feet that bled freely as she gasped for air.

She could hear crashes and shouts; there was no doubt that they were behind her, and her blood was most likely leaving a clear trail for them. //Perspective// she thought again // It's amazing how easily you can ignore pain, when given a good enough reason.// And those ninja following her were all the reason in the world to continue on her head long rush.

Her long black hair fanned out wildly behind her, snagging on anything and everything, her short bangs flying into her eyes with every step she took. Her fair skin was cut in many places, bleeding softly. Her emerald eyes held terror as she increased her pace, terror and the smallest spark of hope. Her plain white hospital-type clothes had long rips on either side from kunai and shuriken, while the bottoms of the pants were shredded purely from running through brambles. //Almost there!// she thought desperately.

Was it her imagination? Or were the shouts getting softer? The crashes quieter? She didn't know, and she didn't much care. She wasn't safe until she reached the famed Konohagakure, a place where she could finally avoid him. Her thoughts raced over how far it was until she was safe, and she wasn't sure, she had never been outside of the lair before, all she knew was that the village hidden in the leaves was due north, and that's the direction she ran in.

Glancing back for the umpteenth time, she heard a shout from in front of her, incredibly loud. Her head snapped around in time for her to run face-first into a boy about her age. Collapsing on the spot from exhaustion she looked up dazed. Her eyes met face of the boy she had run into, who was still standing. His eyes were black, his mouth a thin worried looking line. The triangle marks on his cheeks looked shockingly red to her confused eyes, so she let the lids drop in a blink. Looking down, she blinked again, and her vision went black. Falling onto the forest floor, her thoughts raced, but as she fell into an abyss of darkness they became farther and father away. //I never made it to Konoha... And those ninja are coming...... I can't stop now............I must be so close...//

Kiba was kneeling next to the fallen girl, eyes taking in every scratch on her face to her shredded feet. “What do you suppose...?” he asked Shino, who was standing not far away.

“I don't know, but my bugs have reported ninja coming, about 12 of them, I think we should get moving.” he said in his usual monotone.

“Right” Kiba said, picking up the girl. He couldn't help but notice all the cuts and bruises on her tattered body as he tried to avoid causing her pain. Holding her bridal style, he took off towards Konoha, Akamaru on his heels and Shino just in front of him.

//What could have caused her to run barefoot like that?// he asked himself //And what caused all her other injuries?//

~-~

Kiba and Shino stopped just outside of their home, looking at each other. With unspoken consent, Shino leaped off over the roofs towards the Hokage's tower; Tsunade was going to want to know about this. Kiba turned towards the guards, Izumo and Kotetsu , who were looking at him curiously. Dashing over, still holding the unconscious girl, he hurriedly told them what had happened. “And there are about 12 ninja heading this way, I'm not sure what level, but it's going to be trouble.” he finished.

“We'll take care of it.” Kotetsu said calmly, but Kiba could detect a touch of worry in his voice “Just get her over to the hospital before her condition worsens.”

Kiba just nodded, called to Akamaru, and took off, rushing through the streets. It was barely dawn, so there was no one about, no one that is, except for Kakashi. “Kiba!” he called, halting the 15 year old, “Why are you running about? I didn't know you were back from your mission yet, and Naruto was...oh.” he stopped rambling at the sight of the girl.

Akamaru whined, sitting nearby, looking down at the unconscious girl. “Please Kakashi-sensei, there are about 12 enemy shinobi coming toward the village,and she needs to go to the hospital.” he said hurriedly.

Without a word, the Jonin took off for the gate, moving faster than Kiba ever could. Sighing, the chunin starting sprinting again, nindog on his heels. Barging into the hospital, he ran up to the night guard, who he had just startled out of a nap. “Please! She needs help.” He said, imploring the man with his eyes.

Nodding, he directed Kiba into a room a ways down a corridor. Pushing the door open, he placed the girl on the soft white sheets, laying her on her back to avoid her injuries. It took only a minute for a medical ninja to appear. After telling the story, Cuba hurried out of the hospital and to the gate. His sharp ears could pick up the sound of fighting, and he and Akamaru liked a good scramble. “Ready?” he asked the giant dog. “Woof, woof!” came the deep reply.

~-~

Kanaye slowly became aware of herself, rising up out of a dark unfeeling abyss. The first thing she was aware of was the lack pain.//What's going on?// she asked herself. She had become accustomed to constant pain, because pain was something she had learned to live with in her 15 years of existence. //So why am I not in pain?// she asked herself again.

//I ran away!// the thought hit her like a lightning bolt as she remembered her long run. //So, where am I?// she struggled with her eye lids, forcing them open. Gasping she snapped them shut again, and moaned. This time she slowly opened them, blinking often, to avoid being blinded. She tried to sit up, only to have a hand push her back down. She recoiled from the contact and stuttered violently as she curled defensively into a ball.

“I”m sorry, did I hurt you?” can an anxious voice from about her.

Remembering that she was no longer in the lair, she uncurled and looked up at the boy who had pushed her back down. He wore a large grey coat with black fur trimming, although she could tell by looking at it that it was fake fur. He had tan-ish skin and short brown hair. Two overly large canine teeth poked out from between his lips, and a large upside down triangle was tattooed on each of his cheeks. //Red cheek marks?// she thought //he must be the one who saved me!// Her eyes flickered up to the forehead protector he wore. It had a leaf in graved on it. //So I made it to Konohagakure after all.// she though blankly.

Remembering his question, she shook her head, and the worry in his eyes dimmed a bit. “I'm Inuzuka Kiba.” he said.

“Kanaye.” she said softy. It was the only thing she truly knew about herself; that name. It was on every tag that had been attached to her cage, Name: Kanaye - #: 237854 - Experiment 7.

“Are you okay?” he boy asked, interrupting her thoughts.

“I'm...okay.” she said, amazed that it was actually true.

The door to her room banged open, and instinctively Kanaye curled up defensively again. Two people walked in, the first was a tall ninja with a green vest, a black mask that covered most of his face, concealing his emotions, and hair that was quite impressive, tall and spiky. The second was a beautiful woman with her blond hair pulled into two pigtails. She had a blue diamond in the middle of her forehead, and looked very serious. Remembering that she wasn't in the lair, yet again, she slowly uncurled, although it made her highly uncomfortable to do so.

“How are you feeling?” the woman said in a business like manner, looking into the girls eyes.

“I'm...” the girl struggled for the words. Was she okay? She never remembered feeling this way before, unhurt, without pain.. “okay.” she finished, sitting up.

This time the boy, Kiba, didn't stop her.