For His Sake.
Fear was not an emotion Orochimaru was very familiar with- he'd faced down unlikely odds with a smirk, fought wars with unnatural glee, and generally was an unshakable character no matter what he was faced with. So anything that was close to approaching that dreadful emotion was not something he allowed himself to associate with
And yet, the moment his son asked him if he was allowed to attend the Ninja Academy in Konoha, the only thing Orochimaru could feel was terror. It should have seemed like a perfectly normal request, but somehow, that simple question invoked the kind of dread several people would accuse him incapable of feeling; himself included.
But Mitsuki was almost six; a normal age for any young child of a Shinobi family to begin asking questions about attending a Ninja Academy. So Orochimaru knew he shouldn't have expected any less from his very own son.
The fact was, Orochimaru was still not on the best of terms with Konoha, the only reason he was leery of sending his son to them. While he was not imprisoned after the war, because he had proven himself very useful in the final battle- well, that and there didn't exist a prison that could contain him for long- there was the issue that things couldn't continue as they had before. So they made a compromise; that so long as he did nothing to cause them trouble they would leave him alone. It wasn't the best situation, but it was the only choice they had in the end.
"Why do you wish to go to Konoha to train? I can teach you just fine here… and anything I can't do I'm sure Karin and Suigetsu would be more then qualified to help you with." Orochimaru asked. He looked the white-haired young boy in the eyes, letting him know that he had his parent's undivided attention.
Mitsuki fiddled with his sleeves, attempting to avoid Orochimaru's gaze. But he knew from the beginning this wouldn't be an easy conversation to have, so he pulled together whatever courage he could drudge up, and lifted his head to face his parent head-on. "I know you and the others could teach me Ninjutsu just fine, but… there are things I can't learn here. I want to experience them too…"
"You've told me stories of when you were a Leaf Ninja-all the adventures you went on with Lady Tsunade and Jiraiya. I wanna be able to do that too; I want to make friends and go on missions with a team, but I can't do that here… so please? Please let me go!" He finished hopefully, looking up at him with huge, puppy-dog eyes
Orochimaru doesn't know how to respond to the pleading note in his son's voice, nor that look upon his face. He didn't want to disappoint him, but he also didn't want to give in. He knows Konoha too well for that.
Getting up from his chair, Orochimaru ruffled Mitsuki's already wild hair and gave him a sad smile. "We will continue this discussion later. I have to think about it, okay?"
It wasn't a yes, but it wasn't a no either. Mitsuki smiled brightly as Orochimaru left the room.
OoO
Orochimaru had left his hideout hours ago, hoping that he would be able to think more clearly if he was away from everyone and everything… but he was still lost on what to do. He wanted to give Mitsuki the chance to live a semi-normal life- God knows the boy deserved it, but... he also wanted to keep him safe from harm, and Konoha was anything but safe.
Logically, the answer should have been a straight up no; case closed and not open for discussion.
Logically.
But Orochimaru had long since given up on trying to think like that when it came to parenting- there were just some things that didn't work out rationally when it came to your child's happiness.
Mitsuki's happiness.
On one hand, there were some Ninja's in Konoha that were honourable men: Kakashi Hatake being one of them. Orochimaru doubted he'd ever intentionally hurt an innocent child. But on the other… Orochimaru did take one of his students from him, and thus caused him and the rest of his team considerable pain. The question remains; was Kakashi the type of man who would hurt Mitsuki for his parents past discretions?
After thinking on it for a while, reason said that no, Kakashi Hatake wasn't. But that said nothing about the rest of Konoha. The Villagers were not known for their acceptance of anything that caused them trouble… and the gods above knew Orochimaru had caused his own share of grievances. There was always the chance they could take out their anger and hatred of him on his son.
Would Konoha even accept him? If he eventually agreed to let Mitsuki attend the Academy, would they let him? They had an unspoken agreement that Orochimaru was not to enter the Hidden Leaf without being invited- would that apply to Mitsuki as well?
Growling in frustration, Orochimaru stopped pacing. All these hypothetical questions were giving him a headache. This is why he'd always preferred facts and logic; they didn't require 'what if's'.
After a few more moments of quiet contemplation, Orochimaru came to a conclusion. With a loud, exasperated sigh he headed back to the hideout.
He had a son to see, and plans to make.
OoO
"I'm not saying it's a definite yes. I'm simply saying I will enquire into you attending the Ninja Academy of Konoha. Be advised, this decision isn't entirely mine to make. You know I don't have the best standing within the Village, so I doubt it will be as easy as simply enrolling you into classes. Understood?" Orochimaru explained, after sitting Mitsuki down the next morning after they'd eaten and gone through Mitsuki's morning training.
The boy's entire face lit up at Orochimaru's words, and he beamed in excitement. While he understood that it wouldn't be easy, he didn't care. He was going to get the chance to go to Konoha!
He jumped up from his chair, and into Orochimaru's arms, wrapping his smaller ones around his parents' neck and clinging to his hair the way he always did. "Thank you!" He gushed.
Orochimaru just smiled and held his child closer.
He had decided that Mitsuki's happiness would always come first, and as his parent it was his job to give his son every chance to be happy, even if it meant bowing to the will of Konoha and putting his only weakness in their hands.
He'd do it if it meant getting to see that smile on Mitsuki's face.
OoO
Almost a month later found Orochimaru and Mitsuki traveling to the Hidden Leaf Village. After a set of very long and drawn out Goodbyes, in which Suigetsu most definitely did not cry, and Mitsuki promising to write to Karin and Jugo as often as he could, the two of them were off.
Time passed, and after an hour of walking Orochimaru could see that the boredom that Mitsuki was vainly trying to hide. He picked up his son and jumped into the trees, picking up speed as he did. Mitsuki loved the quick pace they were now traveling at. It took almost no time at all for them to reach the gates of Konoha where Tsunade, Kakashi, Naruto and a small child around Mitsuki's age were waiting for them.
Orochimaru placed Mitsuki down as he slowed down to a leisurely walk.
"Orochimaru," Tsunade greeted warmly. Their relationship had improved since the end of the war- though it certainly wasn't what it was before he left, they were friends non the less. Seeing the boy, she crouched down, kneeling to meet the boy's height. "Hello Mitsuki, it's been a while since I've seen you- you've grown quite a bit!" She smiled at him.
"Lady Tsunade! I've missed you! Thank you for coming to meet us!" Mitsuki chirped brightly, before turning his attention toward the short blond boy hiding behind his father. He waved.
"Mitsuki, meet Boruto- he's going to be in your class when you start the Academy. Hopefully the two of you can be good friends." Tsunade introduced, motioning the other boy over. It took a moment and only a little convincing from his father for Boruto to come forward and greet him.
"Hi," he said shyly, and the two boys smiled at each other.
"Welcome to Konoha, Mitsuki. My name is Kakashi; I'm the Sixth Hokage. And this is Naruto, he'll be the Seventh Hokage in a few years. We're going to show you around and get you settled in." Kakashi said, taking Tsunade's place besides Mitsuki.
"Hello!" The boy replied, giving both men a polite and respectful bow.
"Boruto, why don't you take Mitsuki and go sit down by the gate while the grown-ups talk a little? I'm sure this'll be really boring for both of you, anyway." Naruto said lightly, wanting to get the conversation they were going to have over with as soon as possible. Regardless of the situation, the less time he spent in Orochimaru's presence, the better. Both boys nodded and Boruto led Mitsuki over to where Naruto instructed.
Once they were out of hearing range, Naruto and Kakashi turned their attention to Orochimaru.
"I honestly didn't think you'd show up- it just didn't seem like something you'd do and I'm sure that you are perfectly capable of training your own son… so, why would you want to send him here?" Kakashi inquired. He'd been curious to know ever since Tsunade had brought Orochimaru's proposal to him.
"You don't have children of your own do you, Lord Sixth." It was more a statement then a question, but Kakashi still responded negatively.
"Hm, than I doubt you'd understand my reasoning for requesting Mitsuki be admitted into the academy." Orochimaru said flatly.
Naruto began to glare at the snake Sannin, clenching his fist as if getting ready for a fight to break out. But he stopped Orochimaru spoke up again.
"He deserves the chance at a normal life. He asked me if he could come here, and believe me- if he hadn't all but begged me, I never would have asked. I'd much rather teach him myself. But… when you become a parent, your child's happiness becomes your first priority." He finished, as sincerely he could ever be.
"Alright." Naruto agreed simply, causing both Kakashi and Tsunade to look at him strangely. Orochimaru just held his gaze, trying to read him. "As a Shinobi, I hate you. You have been the bane of my existence for longer than anyone else…. But- as one father to another… I'll trust that you don't have some ulterior motive for sending him here. That you're doing it for his sake and nothing more." They stared at each other for a while, before satisfied, they both nodded.
"Well, now that's all out of the way; would you like a moment alone to say goodbye? "Kakashi asked in his usual drawl." It would be counter-productive you keeping his identity as your son a secret if you came in with us."
Orochimaru nodded before calling out to Mitsuki to join them. The others walked away a several paces, giving them their privacy.
"I have to go now. I expect to hear from you as soon as classes start… keep up your training and study hard, make some friends and don't get into too much trouble. Okay?" Mitsuki nodded and wrapped his arms around Orochimaru's waist tightly, one last time.
"Remember what I told you- you can't tell anyone we are related, okay? It's not safe at the moment. Orochimaru murmured to him. "And I love you… always remember that. "His only response was the tightening of his grip around him and a slight nod.
They stayed like that for another moment before Tsunade came back, and told them that Mitsuki needed to go. After one last hug and a few parting words, Mitsuki ran off to where he could see Kakashi, Naruto and Boruto waiting for him.
Once the four of them were out of sight, Orochimaru grasped Tsunade's hand in his own tightly. When she looked up to meet his gaze, she was shocked by the amount fear she saw deep in his eyes.
"Please look out for him… he's just a child." His voice was so small and quiet that for once, Tsunade didn't know what to say. So, she just simply griped his hand back.
Tsunade's hand in his was like a lifeline stopping him from running into the Village after his son and taking him back to the safety of their home. "Walk with me for a while?" he asked, and this was the closest she'd seen him get to human emotion in a very long time.
Regardless of any of his other vices, nobody could say that Orochimaru didn't love his son.
"Of course." She replied lightly, leading him back away from the village.
Every few yards, Tsunade had to give his hand a light tug for him to continue walking, but she didn't mind. She understood how hard it must be for him to leave Mitsuki in a place so full of people with grudges help him, where he could no longer protect him from danger.
"I'll look after him, Orochimaru… I promise!" She vowed seriously, her hand never leaving his.
"Thank you…"
And, for the sake of his dignity, she doesn't mention the trail of silent tears she could see falling from behind his dark bangs.