The words that were exchanged that night changed my life forever. I couldn't believe that I had been so careless as to let the only thing that I loved more than my power slip through my fingers to never be seen again in the most simple of manners. I am frustrated with myself because of it. How could I let something like that happen? I'm such a fool… So wrote the man sitting at his hard oak desk looking gloomier than he had ever remembering looking in his entire life.
The pen stopped scratching away at the paper as the man finally decided it was best to let his mind rest for a moment as he paused to stare out into the distance. Even though he had hoped his mind wouldn't start thinking about what he had done to make sure the only one he loved lived, it began to recycle all the events leading to her departure in such detail the man almost started to cry as if it was the day that the two had first split ways. He hid his eyes behind his hands in case some one was to walk in. He didn't need them asking unnecessary questions.
It seemed that just as the man's should had started to heave up and down in giant concealed sobs, a knock sounded from the sliding wood door to his left. Letting his sobbing gradually disappear, he dried his eyes and eased the matching oak chair away from his desk. Mindful of any snakes that had decided to enter his room while he had been writing, he slowly and cautiously made his way across to where the door was. The door was permitted to slide open ever-so-slightly to allow him to discreetly regard whoever needed him without alerting them to the fact that the door was open.
Standing on the other side of the door was a blonde haired man with his hair pulled up in a pony tail. The man was staring at his nails as if trying to decide whether the colour nail polish suited him or not. He very obviously hadn't even come to the conclusion that the door was opened and the man within was staring out blankly at him. "What do you want, Deidara?" The man within the room demanded in a soft his as to not betray what had just played through his mind.
The blonde looked visibly looked startled but had managed to control the impulse to jump to keep him from looking like a total idiot. "Oh! Uh, when did you open the door hm?" He asked and then quickly corrected himself with a red face, "Boss wants you, Orochimaru."
The man nodded his head on the other side of the door but offered no vocal response even as the blonde stalked away to return to whatever he was doing before he had been interrupted. Orochimaru closed the door and looked down at himself. He was half dressed and still in the pants he had slept in. He shook his head to himself in self-disappointment and turned back to put actual clothes on.
Once he was fully clothed in presentable clothing, the black haired snake stalked from his room in a melancholy stupor. He approached the Boss's room without being detected by any other members. He rapped softly on the soft wood and waited with some irritation for the man to open the door. The door was opened a moment or two after the knock. Kanon, the ever diligent organizers, had pushed opened the door and allowed the man entrance to the Boss's room before she departed to do her own work.
Orochimaru bowed to the man he called 'Boss' and seated himself in a chair across from the man before crossing his legs and crisscrossing his fingers over one another and staring none to happily at the man on the other side of the bureau. The Boss returned his look of displeasure and sighed loudly in knowing depression that the man was not happy. "Are you ever anything besides melancholy or angry?" The boss asked in a bored tone.
"The answer to that question is yes. I can be one hell of a smart ass when I feel the need to," Orochimaru put in sullenly.
The Boss's eyes narrowed at the man but made a dismissive noise and went on with why he had summoned the dark haired man to his office. "Anyway, Orochimaru-sama, I'm sure you're wondering why I called you here."
"I'm not at all in the least bit concerned as to why you called me here. I'd rather be back in my room sleeping so I didn't have to deal with the idiocy that is the rest of this Akatsuki."
The Boss ignored his comment and went on, "There's some one I would like you to meet. He'll be your new partner from here on out. I hope you two learn to like each other."
Orochimaru hadn't noticed the red head sitting in the chair across from him until the Boss had pointed the man out to him. He raised an inquisitive eye brow at the man sitting in the chair across from him. "And he is…?" Orochimaru directed the question at the Boss.
The Boss leaned forward and grinned evilly at Orochimaru. "Why don't you ask him yourself instead of asking me?"
"Because I really don't care…" Orochimaru pointed out. "I don't usually like to associate myself with some one from Sunagakure. It's not exactly my idea of a picnic."
The Boss rolled his eyes. "Well, Orochimaru, you had better start liking it. He's your partner until one of you dies or you kill each other. Either way, you're stuck with him."
Orochimaru's eyes became slits. "I wouldn't be so smug about this if I were you, Pein-sama. I've been known to kill my partner."
"Funny how that works…" Pein remarked sarcastically. "Sometimes I honestly think you would have been better off born as Jorogumo* the male eater." He grinned wittily at Orochimaru.
Orochimaru smugly grinned back at the man. "Oh, how flattering. I shall have to keep that in mind if you ever get on my bad side… It would be too easy to just swallow you as a snake would after injecting a nerve neutralizing poison into your veins…" He tapped a finger to his cheek to demonstrate that Pein was to kiss him on the check. "It seems that Jorogumo had done me one better." He bowed. "I thank you for the word of advice."
The red haired man snorted a laugh while Pein looked a little shocked. "I'll give you that, Orochimaru," Pein conceded. "Just don't get too close to me to do either one."
"Don't tempt me and there will be no problem, Pein," Orochimaru flashed a final grin at the man and let his mirth fade away. "May I leave now since you have shown me what you wanted to show me?"
"No!" Pein blurted unintentionally and then coughed to make up for it. "You're to go on a mission with him so you can show him the ropes. I'm sure he'll catch on quickly and won't be of much trouble to you as long as you're not barking orders at him as you did to the last person you were paired up with…"
"You think my attitudes will change over night towards my partner?" Orochimaru let a skeptical eyebrow go up. "Oh, you are so naïve in my ways…"
"I'm not so naïve, Orochimaru. You will either behave yourself, which means no barking orders, or there will be a price to pay. And believe me, I'll know whether or not you'll be snapping at Sasori or not," Pein warned.
Orochimaru shrugged uncaringly, indifferently. "Say what you will. I care not either way."
"How did I know you were going to say that?"
"Probably because I don't usually care what you have to say concerning who I'm paired up with."
Pein shook his head and thrust a folder across to Orochimaru. "Read it and then brief Sasori. I know you well enough to know you'll cover thee basics with him."
Orochimaru gave Pein an unnervingly simple smile and nodded pleasantly. "Oh, of course. I wouldn't let you down now…" He rose and motioned for the new member to follow him as he strutted out of the office.
Pein shook his head after Orochimaru and Sasori. "That man…" He muttered to himself before sending a palm into his head.
After their mission had begun, Orochimaru led Sasori through a series of underground passage ways that looked as they walked more strikingly like something Manda would have carved out with his body. Orochimaru hadn't bothered to say much to Sasori about the mission thus far because the man had figured he would be incapable of fulfilling certain quota. Sasori had guessed this much and had kept his mouth shut about it. He would show this stuck up Konohagakure ninja just how much he would need him in the end.
Orochimaru brought them out exactly where they needed to be to begin their mission which fully and honestly surprised Sasori. He glanced at the dark haired man's concealed face. "How on earth did you know exactly where this would bring us to? No, better yet, how did you know that tunnel was there?" Sasori shot the question silently.
Orochimaru simply shrugged and pressed a finger to his pale lips. "We are not alone," He informed the other male. "Konohagakure has their slime dripping from all over the place. Be mindful of your surroundings at all time, and do keep in mind that we are only after a scroll. The less you kill and the less noticeable you are, the happier I am." He removed his hat from his head and straightened his hair. "Oh, and Sasori, I prefer to split up when I work with other people. It gives me more space… We'll meet on the building's top. I have more to discuss with you there…" The hat fell from the snake's hand as a kunai whizzed at it. Without further ado, Orochimaru disappeared in a pile of ash.
Sasori blinked, but he had gotten the hint and he took disappeared to gain more of an advantage over Konohagakure.
As Orochimaru had promised, he met Sasori again on the roof. This time, he was without his coat and looking quite stunning in the ANBU uniform he had stolen from a dead body. He approached Sasori nonchalantly. "You killed some one," Sasori noted.
"Of course," Orochimaru grinned. "I find them more disgusting every time I lay my eyes upon them and I had done it out of necessity… No matter, it's not important. Anyway, we are to get this scroll…" He fished a picture out of his pocket and displayed it to Sasori. "Be mindful of decoys and stun scrolls. I don't need to be saving you unconscious ass on the first mission just because you were careless."
"Likewise," Sasori growled.
Orochimaru flashed a grin. "Oh, I wouldn't be so careless. I'm more than well aware of what this scroll actually looks like. I've handled it on many, many occasions." He tucked the picture into Sasori's hand. "Remember, red will kill you if it gets the chance…" He flipped and kicked open the attic door before dropping in undetected. Sasori was nipping at his heels.
--
*- Joro-gumo (Nephila clavata) is a species of spider that lives in Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and China. Here, Pein is referring to its part of Japanese folklore. Jorogumo was said to be able to transform from spider into a beautiful woman that seduced men, and the men once caught in her seduction were tied up and to be eaten.