Chapter One
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AN: Wow it has been quite a while since I last worked on this story, so I had decided to rewrite it. I was rereading it, and found that I still loved the concept but the writing itself needed some help. There will be some major changes to this story, but most of the same elements will remain.
I will be posting this story chapter by chapter. After I get a chapter revised I will replace it with the one currently posted. I will not however, take the other chapters down until they are revised. So, I warn you in advance there will be some discrepancy going on but don't be alarmed everything will be explained.
Thanks for reading and staying with me, now I hope you enjoy.
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Three years. It had been three years since Sasuke had left the village of Konaha, and one of his only regrets was that he wasn't strong enough to face Itachi. His brother was quite a formidable opponent, feared where ever he went. That was one of the many reasons Sasuke had decided to accept Orochimaru's proposal. Orochimaru might of had his own reasons for wanting Sasuke under his tutelage, but Sasuke was confident enough that he could match Orochimaru in power. He had no need to fear the snake's intentions. It was time to leave the compound. Whatever Orochimaru had planned would be better served if Sasuke just left. There was really no need to stick around, the snake wouldn't teach him everything for fear that Sasuke would defeat him. The old bastard had miscalculated. Sasuke enjoyed training in secret, honing his skills for the fateful confrontation between him and his brother.
Sasuke looked out over the horizon and sighed deeply. The landscape was pleasant to look at when the dusk was approaching. Trees lit by the dying sun seemed to be on fire from all the reds and oranges in the sky. There was a waterfall in the distance that he could barely make out. It was one of the many places he trained, and he could see some of its mist covering the ground around it. Even with the inner calm he was feeling from the surrounding forest, he didn't miss the slight footsteps heading up the dirt path that laid behind him. It had to of been Kabuto, Sasuke was supposed to meet with him over an hour ago. He didn't feel the need to see the secondary snake lurking among his space in the compound, besides Kabuto might have noticed that none of Sasuke's things were still where they were supposed to be. His few possessions were currently residing in transportation scrolls tucked away safely inside the markings on his arms and legs. It was just easier to carry his things that way, better than packing a bag that might get in the way.
When the footsteps stopped behind him, Sasuke didn't bother look just to irk Kabuto. He was satisfied when he heard an annoyed huff.
"Sasuke, Orochimaru and I have been waiting in the meeting room. Were you planning on joining us anytime soon? Or should I just report back that you had betrayed us to your old comrades?" Kabuto sounded smug, like he had successfully pushed one of Sasuke's buttons.
Sasuke stood , then turned to face Kabuto. "The mission ran for longer than expected. The information you provided was outdated and there were quite a few more enemies on patrol near the exit. Thanks to you I had to kill them which was not a part of the mission. So when I speak with Orochimaru I think he would not be pleased to know that his number one spy had messed up and messed up bad." He paused to watch the sweat beading on Kabuto's forehead fall, coating the side of his glasses. "Don't push me, you will lose."
The Uchiha pushed passed Kabuto, making sure to brush his shoulder against the other man's front. It was a warning, and Sasuke trusted that Kabuto would heed it. He didn't have time to trade banter with that asshole anyway. Just as soon as he was finished with Orochimaru, he was leaving and never coming back.
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Sasuke found himself in Orochimaru's work lab. He had tried to find him in the meeting room, the ninja standing guard there had mentioned the work lab so Sasuke went there.
It was dark, darker than most of the compound. The snake had once said the reason for the darkness was to prevent his many samples from becoming contaminated by the sun. Sasuke didn't much care about what went on in the lab, so he never asked that many questions about just what the hell went on in there. He would hear horror stories though. Some people was brought in to be test subjects, while others were brought in just for extra body parts. It was really quite gruesome. Sasuke purposely ignored it, for he wasn't there to be anyone's savior. He did keep an eye on some of the subjects though, just in case he would ever need to form a team that would be strong enough to hold off the Akatsuki. If they managed to somehow stop him from confronting his brother, than having other ally's could be useful. The way things were going though, that plan would never have to see the light of day. Sasuke had got word that Itachi had went off on his own away from the Akatsuki, his only companion being Kisame Hoshigaki; one of the seven swords men of the Mist. He was a dangerous foe, but Sasuke had no doubts about leading him away from his partner to finish the job.
"Ah Sasuke! What a nice surprise you could grace your old teacher with your presence. I had been wondering how you fared against the samurai I sent you to steal from. Do tell me how it went?" The snake's voice was smooth, absolutely no edges to it.
The hair on the back of Sasuke's neck stood on end. He tried not to show any reaction. "You knew about the extra reinforcements."
"Well of course I knew! Kabuto filled me in just as soon as you left. How terribly sorry I am that the information wasn't received earlier, but it seems that I was correct in my thinking that you could handle it. So where is that little artifact I sent you to collect?"
Orochimaru still hadn't turned to face Sasuke, but he could tell that the snake had planned for it to happen that way. If Sasuke had to guess, the mission was less about finding the artifact and more about forcing him to kill. It wasn't the first time Orochimaru had set him up this way, and if Sasuke didn't go through with leaving, it wouldn't be the last.
Sasuke didn't speak as he approached Orochimaru, and Orochimaru still remained where he was not bothering to look behind him. He reached into his shirt and pulled the small item from a hidden pocket. It wasn't much to look at. The item resembled a small rock with strange ancient writings on it. Sasuke had never taken the time to learn about the ancient languages, but he assumed that Orochimaru had. Still, he wasn't convinced the rock had much importance other than to test Sasuke's ability to retrieve it.
The snake was visibly excited to take it from Sasuke's hand, snatching it away and marveling at the inscriptions. He rubbed it several times in circular motions before he placed it beside what looked like a medical instrument.
"What a wonderful piece, truly worth the price of so many lives. Well done my Sasuke, you always go above and beyond. Now why don't you tell me about the reason you feel to leave my humble estate? Decided you're too good for the likes of my teachings? Or is it you have gone soft? You know as well as I that you are not ready to face your dear older brother."
He knew... He must have seen the remains of Sasuke's quarters.
Sasuke took a breath to calm the surprise and to slow his heart rate back to normal. Letting his emotions show would not be a good idea. If the snake planned on killing him, then he wouldn't be asking all of those questions.
"I decided your teachings can no longer further my training. The best thing I can do is go find Itachi to discover just how far he has advanced. Then I can evaluate just how much stronger I need to become. You can't help me with that, so I would ask that you let me leave peacefully. The last thing I want is you for my enemy." His voice was steady. Sasuke wasn't going to budge in his decision.
Orochimaru must have heard it in his tone, for he turned from what he had been working on and gave him a sinister smile. "Oh you poor thing, thinking you are strong enough to challenge me. It's sad really, I wanted to wait until you were in peak condition to claim my reward for training you. I guess I'll just have to cash in before you check out."
Sasuke didn't have much time to react before Orochimaru lunged forward and wrapped his hands around the Uchiha's throat. He was salivating at the mouth as his hands increased the pressure. Air wasn't making it into Sasuke's lungs and he could feel his heart pounding. If he didn't do something, he was going to pass out.
Instead of grabbing the hands around his throat, Sasuke reached for his sword. The sound of his leaving the scabbard was music to his ears as he swung it in an arc attempting to behead the snake. Almost immediately he was released and gasping for air. Sharingan activating with a thought, he waited for Orochimaru's next move.
The snake was standing on the other side of the lab table, a grin spreading across his face. His long disgusting tongue moved along the top, then the bottom of his lips. "It would of been nice to end it quickly, but that wouldn't make it any more satisfying when I finally do take over your body. It won't be long though. My jutsu is already in effect, your body will be mine."
"Orochimaru, you are delusional if you believe that I will give up my body so easily. I can see through your jutsu and there is just no way that you will be able to match my sharingan. Give up and I will spare you."
"Hahahaha! Delusional? We'll just have to see about that when you are watching from the back ground fading into nothing, while I take your body out for a test drive. Not one person I've used this on have survived, so say your prayers little bird." He hissed.
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Kabuto couldn't stand the Uchiha brat. Everything that he did was a threat to Kabuto's standing with his master Orochimaru. It wouldn't be long before the ritual took place and Sasuke would be nothing more than a vessel for Orochimaru's soul. He had never witnessed anyone overcome the jutsu, so when he walked into the work lab and found Sasuke standing in the middle of the room, his first thought was where had Orochimaru gone? Then he took a closer look and saw the blood. It was everywhere, splattered against the walls, floor, and ceiling. There were parts of a giant white snake littering the floor, cut into small pieces. His heart started pounding, never has he seen the giant snake so cut up. It was no longer moving, but neither was Sasuke. There wasn't any blood or snake parts on his person, and his eyes were still closed. He didn't seem to have any visible injuries, but that didn't mean much. If the ritual had been completed then there was a real possibility that Sasuke Uchiha was no more.
The Uchiha's body took a breath before turning to the entrance. His eyes were the same dark color as they had always been, no evidence of an elongated pupil. That didn't mean much either. If the transference had just happened then Orochimaru might still be trying to get oriented.
"Is that you Kabuto?" The body asked.
Kabuto didn't get a chance to respond before Sasuke's body started moving toward the door.
It was eating him up inside not knowing who was in control of the body. He didn't know how to react, or what kind of questions he would be permitted to ask. Finally he worked up the courage with a few deep breaths just as Sasuke passed him and started heading down the hall.
"Which one are you?" His voice shook at the end.
The body stopped and turned his head in Kabuto's direction.
"Why don't you tell me?" He said.
Black eyes turned to red as Kabuto was sucked into the body's head space.
He started to witness what he had never seen before. Orochimaru and Sasuke were standing across from each other. Sasuke had his sharingan activated while he listened to Orochimaru rant about taking Sasuke's body. Nothing he said however seemed to get under the Uchiha's skin, for his curse mark flared out and around him consuming the space in darkness.
Orochimaru yelled and shouted that it wasn't possible, and Sasuke shouldn't have been able to change his own dimensional head space.
The Uchiha didn't listen, and eventually there was nothing left of the snake.
Kabuto was gasping for air when he noticed that he was back in the hallway. Orochimaru was gone... Everything that he used to be Sasuke had absorbed. There was no chance for him to come back.
His vision began to become blurry as his heart started pounding even faster. He had to of been suffering from a panic attack because Orochimaru was gone! What was he going to do now? The entire Sound Village would dissolve into riots, and Kabuto didn't believe that any of the ninja would follow his leadership. Sasuke was actually their only hope of some form of command. He knew he should say something, but he was frozen in place.
Sasuke turned back in the direction he was heading , and calmly left the compound.
So much for the immortal Orochimaru, at least he would never have to deal with Sasuke Uchiha ever again.
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