This is a little project I'm working on. These Old Folks is my main focus, but I had to write this. I wrote as an intended one-shot, but I have some directions I can take it and will probably expand it into a multi-chapter story.
He couldn't breathe. The damn animal had him in a choke hold stronger than anything he'd ever been in, and this was coming from someone who has been manhandled by Tsunade. It wouldn't be long now, he could feel it. The transformed brat was simply too powerful for his weakened body and the poisonous chakra he leaked was slowly eating away at his vessel.
Everything had been going fine until he'd opened his mouth and put himself in this position. Now, he may not leave the bridge alive. God damn jinchuuriki! Orochimaru raged. He hadn't expected Jiraiya to teach the brat to use that much of the Kyuubi's power. The Kyuubi's chakra was so poisonous and potent he figured that Jiraiya would focus on something safe like Senjutsu.
He desperately searched for a way of escape. Maybe if he broke the hold and summoned Manda he could make it back in time? No, he thought viciously, Manda wouldn't be happy to be summoned just to make a getaway and would probably try to eat me for it. Yellow eyes searched urgently for any lifeline, anything at all; and like a gift from the gods he found a way out. A small devious smile slid over his face as he stared at the out of control teen in his demonic face. The transformed Naruto cocked his head slightly in confusion as Orochimaru smiled at him. This wasn't the sort of attitude a prey would be exhibiting and it confused his primal mind. A smile came over his demon like face and he applied more pressure.
Orochimaru's eyes rolled up into his skull and his body went slack. The mini Kyuubi howled in triumph and grasped the body with his other hand intending to rip him apart. That was until the chest of Orochimaru exploded in a shower of gore and a giant thing emerged.
Nearly half a century of research and experiment for immortality had finally shown its face. He glared down at Naruto and with speed greater than expected shot passed him toward his lifeline.
Yamato sighed as he finished tending to Sakura's wound. The Kyuubi's chakra was truly a terrifying thing. The pink haired girl had only been given a glancing blow and the chakra still ate at her. If it weren't for his ability to tame biju chakra she may have died.
"Are you okay, Sakura?"
The medic gave a weak smile. "I'm fine now, but we have to help Naruto." She looked at the raging battle between her friend and their enemy. Naruto had become something different, she could feel the murderous rage within the bubbling chakra and she didn't like it. She had to stop him before he lost even more control and tried to kill them all.
She started to push herself up off the ground when Yamato placed a halting hand on her shoulder. "I understand, but you must not move too much. I'll handle Naruto."
"But . . ." she started to protest when a shadow covered them both. She heard Yamato's sharp intake of breath and looked up at the sick face of Orochimaru; or what she thought was Orochimaru. It had his head, but it had the body of a thousand snakes.
"How fortunate!" The altered Orochimaru hissed happily as he stared his game in the eye.
Yamato stood stupefied at the abomination before him. Instinctively he knew that this was the product of human experimentations, just like himself.
His life as a test subject ended the day Sandaime confronted his old student, but his dark days were hardly over. There were only four people who knew of his existence after he was found; Sandaime, his two advisors and Danzou. The two advisors thought he was an abomination and too dangerous to keep around, so they wanted him executed. Danzou wanted to make him into a weapon and had tried to go around the Hokage to take him into Root. Sandaime saved him by placing him under his direct command in the ANBU. No one would know his history or identity and most ANBU would just assume he was a descendant of the Shodai Hokage.
Nothing, not even his vague memories of being kidnapped and experimented on prepared him for the monstrosity before him. He stared wide eyed at it. For the first time in his professional life he was at a loss on how to defend himself. The only thing he could think of was to just throw any attack, any at all.
Yamato slapped his hands together and flipped through seals. "Mokuton: Jik-" he stopped mid jutsu. The spot where Orochimaru once inhabited was gone; as if he had never been there in the first place.
He quickly surveyed the area. Sai was in the air flying a drawn bird brought to life by his unique Ninjutsu. Naruto was still in his raging state about a hundred yards away. He saw him dashing around uprooting trees and putting his nose to the air trying to sniff Orochimaru out. It wouldn't b e long before he found them.
He turned to check on Sakura when his world went black. The sky no longer existed, the trees were gone and sound was eerily silent. Yamato disrupted his own chakra flow hoping to dispel whatever genjutsu he was stuck in. When the darkness didn't recede he frowned and tried the cancelation jutsu.
"It won't work," a voice echoed from somewhere in the darkness with a tinge of amusement.
Yamato turned to where he thought the voice came from, but it was hard to tell considering the echo. "Who's there," he yelled to seemingly no one.
"Don't you recognize me?" The voice said with a small laugh. "We've spent so much time together."
The owner of the voice made himself visible. Yamato instinctively took a step back as Orochimaru looked at him with a sly grin. "You . . ." he whispered. He never told anyone, not even Sandaime, but he was afraid of this man. He was the reason he spent years locked in a cage being tested like an animal, living in squalor. He was lucky that Sandaime found Orochimaru out or he probably would have died just like all the other test subjects.
"Yes, me," Orochimaru said moving in closer to his future vessel. "I've come for what's mine!"
Before he could respond Yamato felt something grabbed into his legs and arms. He looked down to find some kind of clay like substance crawling over his body making it impossible to move. He frantically struggled against the essence, but the substance just kept covering him.
"Don't struggle, Yamato-kun," Orochimaru said to the struggling ANBU in a soothing voice. "In a few moments we will become one and it will all be over."
'Shit!' Yamato thought to himself. 'I can't let this happen!' He knew he couldn't let it happen, but there was nothing he could do to stop it. The process was nearing its end when the matter finally reached his head and started to cover it.
Orochimaru gave a content sigh as he felt his spiritual chakra start to fuse with his new vessel's chakra. He could feel the new chakra start to flow and his chakra forcing itself to mix with it. He looked at the covered lump that used to be Yamato. 'He will make a great vessel.'
He turned to vanish back into the darkness and take full control of his container when his body shuddered and a sharp pain laced through him. He fell to his knees and covered his mouth as his chest heaved with painful coughs.
A dark blue light filled the void. Orochimaru glanced behind him. The mound that used to be the Mokuton user was pulsing with blue chakra causing chunks of the body taking over material to fall apart. 'Not again,' he thought angrily. He watched helplessly as the chakra exploded and freed Yamato from his jail.
Orochimaru suddenly felt the pain that had incapacitated him disappear. His eyes narrowed as he stared at the disoriented mokuton user. 'How is this possible,' he mused, 'I thought only the Sharingan could defeat this jutsu.' Many different scenarios played over in his head and none of them made any sense.
Laughing disrupted him from his thoughts. Yamato was on one knee breathing heavily as he grinned at Orochimaru. "You don't get it, do you?" Yamato said derisively. "It's impossible to take over my body. Even if I was your most loyal supporter it would never happen."
"And how is that?" Orochimaru asked. He didn't show it, but he was curious as to why his jutsu failed for the second time.
"You are the reason," Yamato said with a triumphant laugh. "The moment you fused me with the Shodai Hokage's genes it became impossible. The Shodai was capable of controlling the biju do to his unique chakra that he harnessed into Ninjutsu. Your normal chakra simply cannot mix with the Shodai's chakra, my chakra."
The explanation made sense to the missing nin. His forehead creased as he went over the information. He hadn't thought of that possibility when he started the project all those years ago. He knew now that any more attempts to take over this man were useless. He formed a single seal and released the jutsu.
The world came back to him with a snap. Yamato stumbled and fell to a knee as a sense of vertigo disrupted his vision. He closed his eyes and opened them again. The bridge greeted him as the world came back into focus. He felt a wave of relief because of Orochimaru's failure. He got up and checked his surroundings.
He turned quickly to check on Sakura when he was hit with most vicious punch he'd ever felt in his life. He felt the left side of his rib cage buckle under the herculean blow and stab into his lung. A mix of spittle and blood discharged from his mouth as he was lifted up off the ground several feet in the air. He started to descend, blackness ebbing at the edges of his vision. He landed with a loud thump as he struggled to maintain awareness. Just before he lost consciousness he saw Sakura staring at him with a wide grin and yellow snake like eyes.
"Ku ku ku," a sick laugh echoed with delight. "Wonderful. Simply wonderful!"
Sai watched the exchange from above. He didn't know what happened, but he didn't think it was good; the thing that Orochimaru had become tried to do something to Yamato, but was thrown back as if punched in the face. While Yamato was recovering Orochimaru slithered over to the stunned Sakura and simply disappeared.
After that Sakura had attacked Yamato and was now looking at her body as if it was some kind of new treasure. 'Not like there's much to admire,' Sai thought sardonically. He heard her laugh and make a comment. Something about her accompanying laugh sent a jitter down his spine. She was different. There was a different aura around her than usual. It felt dangerous.
Yamato was unmoving from what he could see. With that punch he wouldn't be surprised if he was dead. He circled overhead to see what the pink haired kunoichi would do next. He swooped down lower to see to get a closer look. His mission was important, but he couldn't go back to Danzou without some more information about the recent development. This would be twice that Haruno Sakura had attacked a fellow Konoha shinobi (himself first), and not to mention the power of the Jinchuuriki. It would all have to be reported.
He must've gotten too close because she looked up at him. Sai stared at her without emotion, but felt confusion. The pink haired kunoichi's bright green eyes had disappeared an in their place now sat two yellow snake like eyes.
Sai had no time to respond as the eyes sharpened into a glare and of killer intent slammed into him with conspicuous force. The power of it sent him reeling back as he fought the hallucinations of his death. It took every inch of will power to glide the bird to the ground. 'No way is that Haruno,' he reasoned. 'She hasn't bloodied her hands enough to use such a potent killer intent.' The only logical explanation he could think of . . .
"Orochimaru-sama!" Sai called out with one of his false smiles 'That is the correct emotion in these situations, yes?' "May I have a word?"
'Not exactly the sort of body I would have chosen, but it has its advantaged,' Orochimaru thought to himself as he contemplated his new vessel. 'I've never taken a medic before.' The failure of his attempt to take the Mokuton user was a disappointment, butthis girl was a surprising gem. 'Tsunade's apprentice! The gods must truly smile down upon me.'
His new body was different than most. Typically he chose vessels that were similar in height, had decent chakra levels and were physically strong. This vessel was neither of those. He was now six inches shorter than usual, the vessel had pretty low chakra levels (which his own chakra would compensate for) and she wasn't physically powerful at all (something he would have to work on).
However, she had flawless chakra control which allowed her to recreate Tsunade's devastating power, as well as an abundance of medical knowledge that even he hadn't known about and was very proficient in Genjutsu (something he was not). It would take him a while to settle the body how he wanted it, but he could access most of the girls' knowledge and power through instincts alone, just like he would have with the Sharingan had he taken over Sasuke.
He had other things to worry about at first. He had a rampaging jinchuuriki who had finally located him and an ANBU operative offering him a very lucrative deal. His day was done here. He decided he would avoid Uzumaki and take the ANBU with him.
"Let's go," he called to Sai.
Yamato stirred. His eyes fluttered open, but he closed them when the bright sunlight nearly blinded him. He could feel a throbbing pain in his side; which reminded him of what happened. He tried to get up into a sitting position and immediately flopped back down again as a stabbing pain in his chest overwhelmed him. His memories came slamming back. He remembered catching a glimpse of the snake eyes on Sakura and being punched so hard he needed medical attention pronto or he would bleed from the inside in.
A loud roar pulled him away from his thoughts. Naruto was charging toward his location. Out of the corner of his vision he noticed Sakura and Sai take off into the trees away from the charging jinchuuriki. 'Or what used to be Sakura', he thought bitterly. He knew that he'd really screwed the pooch on this one. Tsunade was going to have his head once she found out that her apprentice had been taken by Orochimaru as his new vessel . . . if he survived that long.
But, he had other more important things to attend to before he faced the jutsu squad. He couldn't get up so he formed some seals while lying down and extended his hand at the charging Naruto. "Hokage Shiki Jijun Jutsu Kakuan Nitten Suishu!"
Beams of wood shot out of the ground with metal spikes attached. At once the jutsu went to work suppressing the biju's chakra. The red swirling mass of chakra slowly reduced until all that was left was an unconscious Naruto.
Yamato coughed violently causing a glob of blood to eject from his mouth and onto his lips. He need to sit up, it would slow the blood down from filling his lungs. He doubted he would survive, but he needed to stay alive long enough to talk to Naruto. He dragged himself over to the side of the bridge and pulled his body into a sitting a position with his back against a post. 'Now to wake Naruto up and get home.'
The only words that could describe his reaction when his master burst from the forest before him were thunder struck. He knew things were going bad on the bridge; but to actually have been going so bad he needed to prematurely take a new vessel? No, the very idea hadn't occurred to him at all.
He had been tending to his master health for the past few months. His body was slowly being rejected by the spiritual part of his chakra and he needed constant medical attention. On a good day his master only coughed up some blood, but most days he was bed ridden. He had strongly voiced his objection to the recent plan to assassinate Sasori. He knew as well as his master that he was in no shape to fight a member of Akatsuki, but he had insisted that with his help he they could kill the former Suna ninja before he even started playing puppet master.
They hadn't planned for a change in the equation; Sasori already dead? The situation never occurred to them. Of course everything from there spiraled out of control. He quickly retreated while his master fought the Kyuubified Naruto. He'd been patiently waiting in a tree a little ways away from the battle preparing himself to go back in and retrieve Orochimaru. He never got a chance to get back into the battle. Instead, Orochimaru appeared with a new body and a new ally.
He was unsure of how to react to the new vessel. Truthfully, he liked Haruno Sakura. In fact, he would never admit it aloud, but he had a soft spot for Kunoichi, especially from Konoha. Like always he decided to just go with the flow rather than cause any difficult situations.
"Welcome back Orochimaru-sama," he greeted his master. "You look different."
"Good to see you're alive, Kabuto." The voice of Sakura coming from Orochimaru was something he would have to get used to. "Yes," Orochimaru continued, "this body isn't what I'd have normally chosen, but desperate situations call for desperate actions. Besides, it isn't too bad. I now have a slew of new abilities to add to my own and I can quickly get this body into working order."
"That's good to know," Kabuto said while adjusting his glasses. "We should get back to Sasuke. He's probably growing impatient."
Orochimaru gave a rare bark of laughter at the thought. "I can't wait until he sees me," Orochimaru said with amusement.
Consciousness was slowly returning to him. He felt a sharp sting slap across his face. Naruto slowly cracked open his eyes to be greeted by the sky. He felt another slap against his cheek and hissed in annoyance as he rubbed the sore spot. He sat up and located the source as a long length of wood hovering beside him. He noticed a glowing blue chakra string attached to the piece of wood and traced it back to the user.
Yamato was sagged against a bridge post. His labored breathing carried loudly in through the quiet area. A blue chakra string extended from his right index finger which he used to wake Naruto. Naruto noticed the blood stains on his Jounin jacket and mouth. "Yamato-sensei," he exclaimed. He hustled to the injured team leader and knelt next to him. "What happened? Where's everyone else?"
He looked over at Naruto who was waiting for an answer. "What do you remember?" He questioned. Naruto told him everything he could recall. Yamato knew the coming moments were going to be extremely difficult, especially with Naruto's emotional barometer.
"Rest for a second, we need to talk," Yamato said his voice coming out with a slight wheeze. He knew he should get back to Konoha without delay, but he knew it would be futile now that Naruto was awake and demanding answers.
Naruto looked at Yamato oddly. He had no idea what they needed to talk about, but what he did know was that his current team leader was in obvious pain and needed to get back to Konoha and that two of his teammates were nowhere in sight. Something was pulling at him telling him that whatever Yamato had to say wasn't good. His stomach churned uneasily, he could feel the acids working as the feeling of nervousness crept over him.
"Where're Sakura and Sai?" Naruto asked.
"Naruto . . ." Yamato trailed off. He had no idea how to handle the situation. Being in the ANBU his whole life he never had to deal with consoling someone for losing a team mate or family member. They had doctors or parental figures to do that kind of stuff.
"I don't really know how to say this," he continued sadly. He felt a lump form in his throat as the words formed. "Sakura is gone." The words were devastating to his ears. It was one of the few times in his life that he allowed a little emotion to show. His voice shook slightly as he said the words.
Naruto gave Yamato a confused look. He didn't fully understand what Yamato was getting at. Gone? Gone where? To get firewood? To Konoha for help? "Gone where sensei?"
Yamato gave Naruto another sad look. He reached out and placed a firm hand on Naruto's shoulder. "She is gone, Naruto. Sakura is dead." He said it bluntly. He had to make Naruto understand. There was no beating around the bush.
Naruto just stared at Yamato for a second before replying. "You're lying." He said.
"No, Naruto!" Yamato said. "Listen to me! I wouldn't lie about something like that!"
"Stop it!" Naruto yelled. "Stop saying that! Sakura isn't dead!" Yamato could hear a hint of hysteria creeping into his voice. "She can't be dead!"
"I'm sorry," Yamato whispered to the young blond.
Naruto tensed at the words and looked into his face and really looked at him for the first time. He could see the truth in the grief in his face. However he refused to accept it. He pushed Yamato's hand away from him. "No!" His voice cracked with emotion as he whispered to himself. He placed his hands on the sides of his head. "She's not dead!"
"Hey, Sakura-chan, how did you figure out this tree thing?"
"Next time we'll go after Sasuke together!" Sakura said with a false smile.
"You look good Naruto; how about me?" Sakura asked with a shy smile and an even shyer blush after he returned from his training trip.
He couldn't stop them. They kept coming. 'She's not dead, she's not dead!' He squeezed his eyes shut. He felt a prickling in the corner of his eyes. Tears leaked out despite his battle against them.
"Let it out Naruto. Don't hold anything back," he whispered to him. Another round of coughs racked his body. His breathing had taken on the famed death rattle. It was too late. Darkness was creeping in once again at the edges of his vision. Only this time he knew it would be the final darkness. There would be no waking.
A loud thump sounded behind him. He looked back at Yamato to find that he had slumped to the side and was now laying on the bridge struggling with his last few breaths.
He scrambled over to his dying leader. "Y-Yamato sensei," he whispered. He looked down at the man he only knew for the past few days. "Don't die!" He cried urgently. "You have to tell me! Tell me what happened!" He wiped away the new tears that slid down his face. He still refused to believe she was dead and he wouldn't accept it until he saw a corpse, but he needed to know what happened to her.
Yamato beckoned Naruto closer so that his mouth was right next to his ear. "Sakura . . . Orochimaru . . . new . . . vessel," every word was followed by a deep rattle of blood filled lungs. "Sai . . . betrayal . . . left with . . . Orochimaru . . . willingly." He slowly lifted his body and whispered his last words. "Tell them I'm sorry," and with one last gurgling breath he died.
Naruto backed away from the body as he processed the information. He clenched his hands so tightly his nails cut deeply into his skin. He threw his back and gave a thunderous scream, "Orochimaru!" he roared to the heavens, "I'll kill you!"
Despite his new promise of a lifetime he swallowed his tears and rage. Continuing on with the mission would be fruitless and he had to get back to Konoha, A-SAP. He quickly formed seals and summoned a large toad. He loaded up Yamato's body and gave one last look at the bridge before taking off toward Konoha.
The hideout was a carefully constructed series of tunnels buried into the side of a large hill. It was protected by a complex seal array that killed anyone without permission trying to enter. A team of three people appeared in a swirl of leaves in front of the entrance.
"It's good to be home," the silver haired medic said.
"It is," Orochimaru hissed. He still hadn't changed his appearance back to his normal self. Instead he was keeping his new vessels' body showcased for the time being. He told Kabuto when he asked that he simply wanted to get a feel for it, but he knew deep down he was doing this for Sasuke benefit.
He looked at the other member of their group. The mysterious ANBU operative was an unknown factor. He didn't trust him, but his offer was too good to give up. Or rather, Danzou's offer was too good. It wouldn't be the first time he worked with Danzou. It would be highly beneficial to have an ally as Hokage.
"Let's go," he said as he unlocked the entrance. "Kabuto-kun, take our guest to the visitor quarters." There wasn't really a visitor's quarters, but it sounded better than take our guest to the hole in the wall of dirt.
Kabuto took Sai in a different direction. He had his own destination in mind. Orochimaru quickly made his way through the maze like corridors toward his destination. The room he was looking for had a simple wooden door. The person residing behind was supposed to be his new host, but situations change.
He pushed the door open without knocking. Uchiha Sasuke sat cross legged on the ground in meditation. His eyes snapped open when he felt the familiar presence enter the room.
"Where've you been?" Sasuke asked rudely. "I've been waiting for you all day to teach me that new jutsu."
A big grin blossomed over Orochimaru's face. Sasuke's back was to him so he didn't see his new state. "I was out taking care of some business, Sasuke-kun," he said in Sakura's voice. He saw Sasuke's entire body seize with tension at the sound of the voice.
Sasuke slowly twisted his head to look at the person behind him; his eyes widened when he saw his old team mate Sakura standing in the shadow of the door frame. He got up from his meditating position and slowly moved toward his old friend. "Sakura?" He whispered in confusion. Sakura stepped into the light to give him a better look. Sasuke froze in his footsteps as he started into the yellow serpentine eyes.
"How-" Sasuke began, but trailed off. He was at a total loss for words. This wasn't Sakura. The Sakura he knew and left behind had brilliant emerald eyes. He looked deep into the new eyes of his old friend and instinctively knew that Sakura was no more.
Orochimaru moved in so fast that Sasuke had no time to react. With Sakura's body he pressed softly up against the Uchiha's chest and looked up into his black eyes. "Does this bother you, Sasuke-kun?" She said with a small pout. She moved her head in closer so that her lips were nearly touching the flabbergasted Uchiha's lips. She pulled back and circled around the frozen Uchiha, dragging her hand across his chest as she did so.
"You can stop me anytime, you know." Her voice tickled his ear. He felt her body push up against his back and vaguely realized he could feel her breasts. "Do you like it, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked coyly as her hand slowly trailed down the length of his stomach and stopped just above his crotch. She played with the fabric for a second before slipping a finger under the pants and tickling his pubic region.
The stimuli shook Sasuke from his stupor and he lurched forward breaking Orochimaru's grasp. "Orochimaru," he hissed through clenched teeth. He had cut off ties with his friends when he ran from the village. He would go so far as to say he didn't care what happened to them, but this was too much, even for his indifference.
"You don't like me as I am, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked with a frown. She placed her hand on top of her face and closed her eyes. "How about if I changed," she said pulling her hand away. The normal face of Orochimaru greeted Sasuke with a lopsided grin. "Do you like me now?" He asked his student.
"What did you do?" Sasuke demanded.
Orochimaru gave a nonchalant wave of his hand. "The Kyuubi container was more powerful than I anticipated and forced me to take a new body prematurely. Don't be disappointed, Sasuke-kun, I know you were looking forward to our merging to defeat your brother." He was goading Sasuke now. He knew the Uchiha was planning to betray him at some point, but with his new body he knew the Uchiha was thrown off his game.
"I hope this doesn't make you angry," Orochimaru said with a laugh. "I would hate for our working relationship to be strained." The irony of the statement wasn't lost on Orochimaru. After that little display he put on just a few moments ago Sasuke wouldn't ever be able to work the same with him again.
Sasuke mulled over everything. He knew he couldn't act right now. He could see the blatant attempts to get him riled up. He schooled his features into his emotionless mask and glared at his teacher. "No, everything will be fine, Orochimaru."
"Glad to hear it," Orochimaru said with a clap of his hand. "We'll meet tomorrow after my body has adjusted to teach you that jutsu."
Sasuke watched his master leave. As soon as he was sure he was gone he viciously punched the wall. 'Dammit! Sakura-' he raged internally. The time they met flashed before his eyes as if only happening yesterday.
"Take me with you, I love you," she had screamed.
"Thank you, Sakura," he said before he knocked her out.
He hit the wall again. This wasn't supposed to happen! He had it all planned out so perfectly in his mind. He would have waited until Orochimaru's body started to fail and he was at his weakest. It was then he would strike and kill the Snake Sannin. Now, his plans were ruined. He was unsure of how to act.
It was only by chance that he decided to recall Orochimaru's parting words. "'We'll meet tomorrow after my body has adjusted to teach you that jutsu.'"
'I'll have to do it tonight. He needs time to recover so he'll be at his weakest,' Sasuke sat on his bed as he planned out the nights events in his head.
Orochimaru chuckled quietly as he replayed his meeting with Sasuke a few hours ago in his head. The boys' reaction was exactly what he'd hoped for. Now, he only had to wait and see if Sasuke was a smart and devious as he thought he was. He had laid out the bait and now he sat in his room waiting to see if he had to reel Sasuke in.
So, it was without any surprise when the attack came. He was sitting on the ground meditating when a sword of lightning sliced through the door frame. He rolled out of the way of the dangerous attack and stared at it. 'Curious,' he thought, 'Sasuke's never shown that much ability at shape manipulation.'
There was a series of quick slashing sounds before the door collapsed into many pieces. He looked up to see a silhouette standing in the doorway. Blood red eyes stared back at him and the Kusanagi sword rested on his shoulder.
"Hook, line and sinker," Orochimaru said to himself.
"I have nothing more to learn from you," Sasuke proclaimed as he glared at his now former master. "I won't show you any mercy, even if you beg."
"Confident, aren't we?" Orochimaru mocked.
Sasuke continued as if he hadn't heard him. "You are weaker than me. There's no point in sacrificing my body to you anymore."
The snake Sannin leaned against the wall showing obvious disrespect for Sasuke's abilities. "Those are some pretty big words coming from the left over Uchiha."
His words must've struck a chord because the black markings of the juin jutsu started crawling over his face. "You only wanted me because you couldn't handle Itachi! Isn't that right mister "great Sannin genius"?"
He gave Sasuke a small glare, but didn't react much to the comment. He didn't say anything. Instead he would let Sasuke speak as much as he wanted. The boy's arrogance was truly amazing.
"Perhaps the world at large would consider you gifted, but the truth is you are nowhere near the level of an Uchiha. Before us the greatest ninja come off as average." Sasuke claimed all of this with a great smugness and arrogance that even Orochimaru had to smile.
"As someone who carries the name of Uchiha I find it so disgusting it's funny at your attempts to gain our power."
Sasuke glared and for the first time in battle let loose his killer intent. "You sicken me," he said as he charged his relaxed looking teacher. Sasuke closed the small distance in the blink of an eye; he was upon Orochimaru in an instant and thrust his blade forward. He stopped the point of the sword inches from his head as the emerald eyed, pinked haired Sakura stared at him with confused eyes.
"Sasuke?" She asked with bewilderment. "Where am I? What's happening."
Sasuke tightened the grip on his sword and swallowed the lump in his throat. 'This isn't Sakura! Just thrust forward and kill him!'
"Sasuke? Answer me!" She pleaded. "Where's Orochimaru? He tried to do something to me, but I fought him off."
His will was wavering as his Sharingan looked deep into her green eyes. "Sakura?" He inquired quietly. "Is it really you?"
Sakura gave a soft smile and reached out for Sasuke's face. She cupped his cheek and slowly ran a thumb over his lips. She leaned in so close he could feel her breath on his mouth. "Of course it isn't me," she whispered and pulled back with a small laughed. The answer caught him so off guard he had no time to react when he felt a small pinch on his neck and his body collapsed to the ground.
Sakura stood over him and smiled down at him. The emerald eyes were yellow and snake like again. "Foolish boy, did you really think for one second that weak willed girl could overpower me?" Sakura's voice ridiculed him.
Kabuto appeared in his vision standing next to Orochimaru. "It looks like you were right, Orochimaru-sama. Like a good fish he took the bait."
Orochimaru knelt next to Sasuke and patted his head. "No worries Sasuke. I always had a hunch you planned to betray me. I simply laid the bait out there earlier. I knew that when I told you I was in a weakened state after taking a new body you would come after me to kill me. It's a good thing I had Kabuto-kun waiting for you to let your guard down."
He stood back up and turned to Kabuto. "Sedate him and put him in his room." He turned his back on the two and left the room.
His mission wasn't an easy one. He was to gain Orochimaru's alliance, infiltrate his base and kill Uchiha Sasuke. So far, everything had gone according to plan. Orochimaru was still recovering with his new vessel and from what Kabuto told him Sasuke was in a medically induced coma.
He kept close to the walls as he hurried down the corridor. The shadows kept him hidden from most eyes, but he knew better than to let his guard down around this crew. His targets room was around the next bend. Killing him would be the easy part, escaping would be where things got tricky.
Sai eased the door open and slid into the Uchiha's room. He could make out rising chest of the Uchiha as he breathed. 'Steady now, this is just like every other mission,' he tried to calm himself. He stood over the vulnerable Uchiha. The drugs in his system kept him unconscious which made the mission much easier.
With a quick motion Sai withdrew his short sword from his back and placed it against Sasuke's exposed throat. He looked down at the soft features of his target and thought of the words that Naruto and Sakura preached about this person. They had such kind things to say about this missing nin who posed a huge security breach.
That was the main reason he was here. Danzou was sick of Tsunade's incompetence and decided to take the initiative. For years she had resisted the demands that Uchiha Sasuke be put in the Bingo Book for assassination. Instead she insisted on allowing this obvious failure in protocol persist and in doing so put the safety of the village in danger.
Sai shook his head to clear his thoughts. He lifted his short sword over his head and with a downward swing cleaved halfway through Sasuke's throat. He frowned as he started at the wound. "Looks like it needs a sharpening," he said as he jerked the blade out of his throat. A spray of blood shot into the air when he removed the sword.
He lifted the sword one more time to fully sever the head. He looked down and noticed the wide eyes of Sasuke staring up at him in fear as he choked on his own blood. Sai closed his eyes and swung down once more and cut clean through the rest of the throat. The head rolled off the bed and landed on the dirt floor with a loud thump.
His breath was ragged. Every time he made a kill his adrenaline sometimes became too much and would lose his breath. The head stopped rolling and came to a rest by his foot. He reached down and picked the head up by stared at the dull lifeless eyes of Uchiha Sasuke.
For a fleeting second he wondered how pissed Naruto would be if he drew a large penis next to Sasuke's mouth, but he knew it wouldn't be appreciated by his superiors. He placed the head down and began his work on sealing the body into a scroll.
Naruto sat in the morgue staring at the prone body of Yamato. Tsunade had done an autopsy and found that even with medical attention Yamato's life as a shinobi would have been over.
After his examination she stormed out of the room with tears in her eyes without a word toward Naruto. When he got back to Konoha and explained what Yamato told him, Tsunade had blown her lid and destroyed her office. She nearly killed her advisors when they tried to placate her.
He had spent the last few hours down in the morgue because it was the last place anyone expected him to be. He didn't know if he could take the condolences or I'm sorry comments from his friends.
"You know, people may be a little freaked out if you hang out in the morgue," a voice interrupted his thoughts.
"Kakashi-sensei," Naruto dully greeted without looking at him. "I'd rather be alone if you don't mind."
Kakashi sighed. He pulled up a chair next to Naruto and plopped down. "Trust me; usually I would leave you to heal on your own, just like my teacher did. But, you and I are different and I think you could use a friend right now."
Naruto lowered his head and looked at his teacher from the side. His exposed eye had a tinge of red indicating he had shed a few tears recently. Naruto had to remind himself that Kakashi had also lost someone in Sakura too. "Why did it have to be her?" Naruto asked. "Why did she have to die?"
Kakashi stared down at the floor and sighed. "Welcome to the shinobi world," Kakashi simply said.
Naruto glared at his teacher for giving such an obtuse answer. Kakashi could see Naruto didn't like his answer so he elaborated.
"This is our world Naruto," he explained. "If you can't get used accept that then you better retire now and save yourself the heartache. I've lost almost every one of my friends I graduated with, including both of my best friends. Trust me, I know what you're feeling and it's hard."
Naruto brought a hand to his chest and rubbed it. "Will the pain ever go away?"
"I would love to tell you that it will," Kakashi said, "but that'd be a lie. No, the pain will be with you and me for the rest of our lives. The only thing we can do is cope with it and use it however we can."
Naruto nodded at the words. The pain in his heart was still there, but it dulled at his teachers words. "Thanks," he said to Kakashi.
They both sat in silence reflecting on their own memories on lost friends and comrades. Their silence was interrupted when a figure appeared in the doorway. He was wearing a white and red ferret mask and covered in a grey cloak.
"Hatake Kakashi, Uzumaki Naruto," the ANBU said without asking. "You are required at the Hokage Tower immediately." With his message delivered the ANBU disappeared leaving the two alone.
"I wonder what this could be about," Kakashi said tiredly.
What ever was waiting for Naruto and Kakashi behind the door to the Hokage's office couldn't be good. The yelling could be heard from outside the tower and it told both of them that whatever it was couldn't be good.
Kakashi pushed the door open to find the three oldest retired ninja in the village, and advisors to the Hokage; Mitokado Homura, Utatane Koharu along with Danzou and his operative, Sai in a yelling match with Tsunade (well, Sai was just standing off to the side).
It was obvious whatever happened was not going well for Tsunade. Her rage was so great her face had surpassed red and bordered on purple.
"I don't care what you think is good for the village!" Tsunade thundered. "I'm the Hokage and I make the decisions."
"If that's the case, then you have done a poor job as Hokage!" Danzou thundered back. "Your feelings for the Jinchuuriki clouded your judgment and because of that you put the village at risk. What would you have done if Sasuke attacked a shinobi from another village and their Kage found out we hadn't listed him as a missing nin!?"
Tsunade didn't answer; she knew Danzou had her there. If Sasuke had done something to another village then Konoha would be held responsible for not listing him as a nuke-nin.
Seeing his opening Danzou plowed on. "Your silence speaks volumes. I plan to take this issue up before the Daimyo. Come, Sai."
The old leader turned his back on Tsunade. As he walked by he looked down at Naruto with a glare. He stopped for a second and turned back to Naruto. "Sai brought you a present, Uzumaki," Danzou said before leaving with Sai.
Naruto and Kakashi looked back at Tsunade who was bringing her rage back under control. The other two advisors didn't leave. Instead they waited for Tsunade to calm down before they talked again.
Tsunade looked up at Naruto as he approached. Her eyes were clouded with a tunnel vision. "Naruto," she said sadly. She pulled out a scroll and laid it on the top of her desk.
"Why were you guys arguing about Sasuke?" Naruto asked.
"I'm sorry, Naruto. That man that you saw leave decided to take matters into his own hands," she said.
"What do you mean?"
"Just show him, Tsunade," Homura said.
Tsunade threw a hard glare at the old man, but she relented. She unraveled the scroll and released the seals. The corpse and severed head of Uchiha Sasuke rested on her desk. She refused to look up when she heard two sharp gasps.
Naruto stared wide eyed at the sight. The dull lifeless eyes of the decapitated head stared up at him in frozen horror. He was so shocked didn't even react visibly.
Instead he just stood there as Koharu stepped next to him and looked down at the corpse and said, "It's for the best."
Hope you enjoyed it. Discussion for this fic is over at A Demon's Desire forum, just follow the link in my profile. Review and tell me what you all think.