Darkwings13: Reference to episode 127 of Naruto Shippuden, where Sarutobi says that Orochimaru and Tsunade have already known each other before the genin team was formed under his tutelage.
"Geez."
"Ouch!"
Under the bright and sunny day, outside on a training ground, Sarutobi withdrew his fist from the head of his newest disciple, Jiraiya, and said with exasperation, "Even though I'm going easy on you, you're still a predictable dwarf!"
On the side, Orochimaru arched a slender eyebrow at the exchange, before looking away in annoyance and giving a curt, "Hmph," and frowning. So far, the only thing that ran through his head when he would look over at this 'Jiraiya' was 'cannon fodder'. To put it mildly, he was not impressed. Somehow, Jiraiya had managed to trip over his feet three times, get bitten by a squirrel, and punched himself in the face during the spar with their sensei.
"Sarutobi-sensei."
A serene and cheerful voice rang through the clearing, making Hiruzen Sarutobi, Jiraiya and Orochimaru turn their heads towards the newcomer. The new girl, with a head of sunny blond hair tied up in to a messy ponytail, put a hand on her hips and smiled at them. Orochimaru could see Jiraiya immediately making a sound of delight at their female comrade and his disapproval of his teammate sunk another ten meters. A failure and a womanizer, he thought to himself dully.
The girl didn't really notice and her light chocolate eyes sparkled in merriment as Sarutobi made the introduction. "That's Tsunade. She'll be working with you in a three man cell. You know her right, Orochimaru?"
His golden snakelike eyes moved over to rest upon her bright face and he made a sound of acknowledgement, his frown relaxing slightly at her arrival. They had been together for an entire year right up to their graduation to Genin together. He wasn't surprised to see her, knowing that they were both at the top of their class and Sarutobi-sensei had expressed a desire to make a legendary team, so he was already confident that they would both be chosen for the team. If he wasn't in such a foul mood from thinking about being stuck with an incompetent failure like Jiraiya for the next decade, he would have given her a warmer greeting. His sharp eyes moved over to the white haired boy as he ran forward to her.
Jiraiya proved his doubts right as he interrupted Sarutobi to talk to Tsunade. "Hey there. I'm Jiraiya. Nice to meet you." He folded his hands behind his back and gave her a strange look. "You can write me love letters after if you want to."
His eyes widened slightly, seeing the horrified expression on Sarutobi's sensei face and Tsunade leaning back before giving their white hair teammate a look of annoyance. "And why would I want to do that?" she asked. Quietly, Orochimaru began counting to three in his head. Before he reached two seconds she shouted, "Don't screw with me!" Her fist connected hard with Jiraiya's stomach, sending him flying sky high.
While Sarutobi squinted up into the sunlight and sighed, he met eyes with her and smirked in bemusement. In return, she flashed him a wide grin, used to understanding his facial expressions and knowing that he was relatively pleased.
As they waited for Jiraiya to fall back into sight so that Sarutobi could catch him, Orochimaru reminisced on the first time he had met Tsunade. Even then... she had quite a temper.
Closing the door to his house shut, Orochimaru quietly headed out, wearing a blank expression on his pale face. If it wasn't for the fact that he had run out of food to eat, he wouldn't have left the comforting darkness of his house. The sun was starting to set and for that he was grateful for. He hated crowds and most people are probably returning home by now.
Adjusting his white robes and tying his purple ribbon, he wanted to at least look presentable if people looked at him. This was rather often since he stood out like a sore thumb. His skin was deathly white, his eyes golden like mixed amber and honey, further highlighted by the light purple markings around his eyes, and he wore his black hair long. Even though some of the kids laughed and called it girly, he refused to cut it. His mother loved his hair and that was enough for him to forever keep it long in her memory.
After some time, he finally arrived at the market. Everyone was indeed packing up and he looked over to see an old lady, not quite done packing away her meat buns. Walking over, he said quietly, "Could I purchase one?" They smelled good, and his stomach rumbled slightly in anticipation.
"Oh? Oh of course." The old lady cheerfully put one into a paper bag and handed it over to him. Giving her the money, he made to return home to continue on with his readings. A week or so and it would be his first day of classes at the ninja academy. He'd better prepare some more. After all, the only reason why he could afford to stay out of the orphanage, keep his parents' small house and be allowed an allowance was because the village deemed him a genius. Even without attending school, he had learned and studied alot on his own. In these times of conflict and war, anyone that had potential was carefully monitored and valued.
"Hey hey hey!"
Orochimaru stopped in mid-tracks as some paper money hit him in the face, carried by the wind. Prying it off, he held it up with mild curiosity before turning his golden eyes on the blond girl running towards him and waving her hands.
"Oh thanks!" chirped the sunny girl, grinning widely at him, her low pigtails bouncing behind her. "That's the money I won with my grandfather today! The first in awhile."
He winced slightly at her loud voice before handing it over. She looked at around his age, five. How could she be gambling?
"Tsuna!"
He looked over her head and gasped slightly, seeing the first Hokage walking towards them. Bowing, he said politely, "Lord Hokage."
"Ah it's ok, it's ok!" Hashirama laughed. Rubbing the five-year-old girl on the head, he said brightly, "Thanks for catching my granddaughter's money. It's the first she's won in awhile."
So then this was Tsunade Senju, the granddaughter of Lord Hokage, and the one everyone called 'princess' in the village. Straightening up, he could see clearly now, how well taken care of she was. Her hair was like burnished gold, lovingly braided. Her white and red dress was ironed and looked brand new, and the shape of her face showed that she was clearly well fed. Compared to her, he looked like a stick.
Not one for conversation, he bowed once more. "If I may, my Lord, I have to return home. It's getting late."
"Oh, is your mom and dad waiting for you?" Tsunade asked cheerfully.
"They're dead."
As he said that, she saw something distant flickered in his golden eyes and her heart immediately clenched up. The intense sadness in them was engulfing... like a vast and deep ocean. Unable to meet his eyes, she looked down at the ground. Quietly, she said, "I'm so sorry."
"Thank you for your kindness," he said, the words not genuine but merely said out of etiquette. Bowing once more, he headed back home, the wind pulling at his silky long hair.
Tsunade watched as he left, and she tugged on her grandfather's navy blue pants. "Do you think..."
"Most likely because of war," Hashirama said sadly, holding onto his granddaughter's hand.
"But you brought peace now," Tsunade replied, not quite understanding.
He sighed and rubbed her head. "It came at a great cost to our people, Tsuna. I just hope that things can remain peaceful, now that our village is settled."
"Do you think he'll be alright?" she asked, her gaze still locked on to the skinny pale boy. "He looked sick."
Hashirama couldn't help but smile, touched that his granddaughter was showing compassion and care towards someone she didn't know. "The people in our village are strong. I'm sure he'll be fine." When she didn't seem very content with his answer, he smiled. "If you worry, keep an eye out for him and try to help if you can. Friendship and understanding, is the first step to this peace we now have, Tsuna."
"Peace..." she said, looking over her shoulder, thinking about how empty and sad the boy's eyes were.
It was first day of classes...
Standing underneath the shade of a tree, Orochimaru eyed the building that was nestled beneath the hokage mountain. It wasn't much of a school, in his opinion. The village was still new, and this was a prototype of an academy. Years later, perhaps it would become an actual academy with many buildings attached to it. For now, it was just a large building with five large classes inside. Everything was made of wood, inside and out, an obvious creation from the first hokage's powers. He could see the running tracks nearby and a 'playground' that the first hokage had kindly made up for them. Some slides, smiling wooden structures that looked like snowmen, and a forest of wooden cut trees so that they could hide and run around in. A set of swings were even in construction.
He sighed slightly as the kids that had been waiting for school to start, jumped up and down in excitement in front of the doors with their siblings and parents. A few were given open hugs and kisses and he felt his heart clench. Looking down at the ground, he adjusted the old sidebag that was holding his scrolls and papers. Quietly and with downcast eyes, he walked forward. A few kids and adults glanced his way but quickly returned back to their conversation. He caught a few 'don't you set the school on fire' and 'remember to eat your lunch' as he passed them and his eyes grew further downcast.
Reaching their classroom, he headed for the back seats. Not too far so that he wouldn't be able to hear or see, but not near enough towards the other kids. Gently, he placed his bag down and began taking out clean paper and a pencil. It took another ten minutes before all the kids were settled down and he sat there patiently, relieved when the teacher began to take attendance.
"Orochimaru?"
In the back, he raised up his pale hand. When the teacher nodded and continued on with the name calling, he looked outside the window, noting that it was going to be a cloudy day. So far, the teacher seemed nice enough he supposed. The man was somewhere in his early twenties, had a relatively nice face and messy brown hair. From his attire, he was a jonin and seemed to have experience with teaching, as he seemed relatively comfortable with the position. Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see a few kids here and there already chatting with each other and forming groups. He looked down at his desk forlornly. He didn't see much of a point in forming relationships. To see and be near people who are always happy, who have families and love would just remind him of his own barren home. Being here, he only wanted to study and learn.
"Tsunade Senju!"
"Here sensei!"
Orochimaru glanced over in surprise, seeing the 'princess' sitting smacked in the middle of the classroom, a big smile on her face. She seemed to have already gathered a plethora of girl friends around her, as she resumed conversing with them after she lowered her hand. Instead of the pigtails she had worn when he first saw her, it was now tied up into a ponytail. He tilted his head in slightl puzzlement. So he was to be in the same class as the first Hokage's granddaughter... Folding his hands together, he turned slightly and saw a few disliked looks glaring in her direction. From the insignia on their clothes, he realized at once they were from the Uchiha clan. Most of them had happily accepted Hashirama as Hokage, but a few were still not too happy, especially since their supposed leader, Madara, had left the village.
After the attendance was done, their teacher began a speech of how they were here to learn how to become great shinobis who will grow up to defend their beloved village and their comrades, and that they need to behave or else nothing will get into their head or something, school officially began. Orochimaru listened carefully and took notes, trying not fidget in his seat. They were learning about the Body Replacement Technique, a method used to escape danger and fool that enemy for a brief second that their attacks had been successful, before using the advantage to counter. He already knew about this technique and could actually perform it. Despite so, he still tried to keep focus as the lecture went on. The period passed on with hand seals, the correct situations to use the technique, and the repercussion of failing it. When the lunch bell rang, he sighed in relief. Any longer and he was probably going to doze off. Tomorrow, perhaps he should bring some of his more advanced scrolls to study in class. This was abit of a waste of time.
Getting out of his seat, he headed out with the other kids, his hand holding on firmly to the strap of bag. Once they were outside, he walked over to the tree he had been standing under earlier. Brushing the ground lightly, he adjusted his white and purple robe before sitting down. As he took out a boiled egg he had made for lunch, he watched silently as a few of the kids exchanged bento boxes and rice balls. Some of them complained about their food while others complimented their friend's lunches. At a distant, he could hear Tsunade's group ooohing and aaahing at her lunch. He didn't really care to look. As princess, it was probably big enough to feed three people and probably had gold dust or something on it.
Taking out the other hard boiled egg from his bag, he continued eating, his expression blank. He tried not to think about the lunches that the kids were eating around him... which were lovingly made by their parents. Lowering his head, he closed his eyes and swallowed hard, suppressing the now familiar ache in his heart once again. Briefly, he wondered how long would it take... before he could finally force his heart to become dead to these emotions.
"Hey, you're in our spot."
His golden slit shaped eyes moved upward, as three large boys stood before him, their arms crossed. They were a head taller than him, and probably twenty pounds heavier as well. The three were either from the same clan, or they just happened to look incredibly similar to each other. All three wore headbands and the same green shirt that ended near their elbows. They had also attempted to style their hair the same way, in ridiculous spikes.
"We've been hanging around here all summer girly," said the biggest one, a boy with spiky red hair and a chubby figure. "So move it."
He didn't like to be in the spotlight of things and it's not like there wasn't a bunch of nearby trees that he could sit at. But quite frankly, his nerves were wearing thin and to be able to vent out some of his pain and frustration on someone, was something he was itching to do. Orochimaru tilted his head back and regarded them with lidded eyes. "I can see that. With your weight, you probably don't move around to other spots very much," he said lowly, dangerously.
"Why you!"
By now, they had caught the attention of almost the entire playground. The silence was almost deafening and quite frankly, the stares were irksome. He hated being stared at. The pudgy one opened his mouth and shouted, "Take that back!"
Orochimaru popped the rest of the egg in his mouth and swallowed. "Try to lose some weight instead of living in denial." Another audible gasp reverberated through the place and he was sure that everyone's eyes were on them now.
Tsunade put her hands over her cheeks as she recognized the same five year old boy from a week ago that she had ran into. "Hey! Stop!" She gasped as the pudgy one shot out a fist and it connected solidly with the boy. In the next second, a cloud of smoke enveloped the whole lot of them and Tsunade stared, along with all of her classmates as the smoke slowly dissipated, revealing a dropped log . She instantly realized that he had performed the Body Replacement Technique. All of a sudden, he then ran out from behind the tree and proceeded to take them out. Leaping up, the pale boy delivered a devastating drop kick on the one on the left, knocking him out cold. Using the momentum, he struck out an elbow and it connected solidly with the second one's chest, efficiently dropping his second opponent to the ground. As their leader tried to jump him from behind, he bent backwards into a handstand, his yellow eyes flashing as he locked both legs around the leader's neck. His hands pushing against the ground, he swiftly slammed his opponent's head into the ground, before elegantly leaping backwards and standing tall, surveying the damage he had done with cold eyes.
Everyone around him was staring with wide eyes, she included. Even though he looked frail and sickly, he was incredibly strong and acrobatic. More surprisingly, he had managed to move so incredibly well in that restrictive white robe of his. Her cheeks turned pink slightly in admiration as he stood there calmly, his black hair dancing in the cool wind.
"What is going on out here?!"
Orochimaru turned as his teacher ran over to them. He inwardly sighed, knowing that he was in trouble. All of a sudden, a golden blur appeared before him and pushed him back.
"Sensei! It's not his fault. These three kids tried to take his spot!"
Their teacher groaned and put a hand to his head. "Tsunade, that is no excuse to-"
But the girl put her hands on her hips and pursed her lips at him. "They also called me ugly! He's my friend and just wanted to get revenge for me."
Orochimaru arched an eyebrow at the lie, wondering why she was trying to defend him.
The pudgy leader raised up his hand up from the ground and said weakly, "But Tsunade, I never-"
Orochimaru was amused as she quickly kicked the moron on the side of the head and made sure that he stayed knocked out.
"Tsunade," sighed their teacher. Bending down to her height, he said, "Fighting is strictly prohibited. Your friend broke the rule and has to be punished."
A few seconds of silence passed and he made to push his way past the girl to ask for the details of his punishment, just wanting to get it over by now so that people would stop staring. But before he could even move a foot, she punched their teacher and broke his nose. His mouth dropped open as their teacher toppled backwards and blood spurted out of his nose. Slowly, he looked down at her and stared in shock.
Grinning, she said, "No need to thank me for helping you."
"We're both going to be in detention. How is that helping?" he retorted flatly.
Orochimaru rubbed at the bridge of his nose, wondering how he had managed to land in this predicament. Here he was, stuck in detention with the village's princess and was now probably hated by their teacher. She was the hokage's granddaughter, so she would escape unscathed. As for him, he was going to have to do extra bonus work and write out an entire book worth of answers for every question because their teacher was probably going to mark his tests with all the hate he could muster out of his very toenails. He glanced over at her, as she pouted at thin air and kicked her legs back and forth impatiently.
"This is so boring," she groaned, hitting the table. A drop of sweat rolled down his temple as he saw a thin line cracking down the solid wooden desk. "Want to do something!" She then glared at him. "And I'm still waiting for you to say thank you."
He glared at her. "For what?"
"For saying that I'm your friend and that I stood up for you."
Silently, he counted to ten in his head to maintain his composure. "Tsunade-hime," he said scathingly, "Announcing me as your friend is the complete opposite of what I want. Secondly, you standing up for me ended with us both being in detention."
She pouted at him. "It's the thought that counts! Besides, everyone in the class knows you now since you did the Body Switching Thingy and knocked out three kids who outweigh you by a thousand pounds! If you didn't want to get noticed, you should have just moved your seat."
"It's called the Body Replacement Technique," he said dryly.
She rolled her eyes and flipped her ponytail. "Whatever." When he returned to staring at the wall, she poked him. "Hey hey, how did you do that jutsu anyways? Teach me?"
This was going to be the longest detention of his life... not like he ever had any detention of course, but he was sure this memory was going to be ingrained into his head for the rest of his life. How shameful. He usually ignored people but because she was the granddaughter of the Hokage (and she could probably break more than his nose if she was angry at him), he couldn't really stay silent. "Just read and study today's notes and practice, Tsunade-hime," he said sullenly.
"You sure like calling me princess," she said, grinning.
He eyed her wryly. "It's not what you think."
Tsunade pouted as he returned to being silent. Slowly, her expression grew solemn. "Why do you look so sad?"
"I'm not sad, merely annoyed."
Her hazel eyes grew doleful. "You sounded sad when you said good-bye to me and grandfather."
He turned his head, letting his long hair hide his face, deciding that it was just best not to reply to that comment.
"Tsuna!"
"Grandpa!" Tsunade jumped out of her chair and ran over to the first hokage, who had entered the empty classroom. She squealed in delight when he picked her up. "Grandpa! Did you come to pick me up?"
Hashirama sighed and placed her back down. "Yes, and I wasn't very happy to hear that you punched your teacher on the first day of classes, Tsuna. What's gotten into you?"
She waved for him to bend down. Once he did, she began rapidly whispering into his ear. Orochimaru was taken back when the first Hokage burst out laughing. "Alright, you take your new friend and head out to play. I'll talk to your teacher."
In the next second, she had grabbed his hand and dragged him out of his chair. They ran past the teacher in the hallway and he hastily looked down. Once they were outside, she chirped, "So, what do you want to do? Oh I know! Help me with that Body Replacement Technique!"
"What did you say to your grandfather?" asked Orochimaru, freeing his hand out of her grasp. Even though she was smaller than him, she had an extremely strong grip. He couldn't feel two of his fingers.
"I just told him that you stood your ground and didn't deserve to get punished," she replied, beaming. "That, and it's our first day of school. No one should end the day in detention." Holding out her hand, she smiled. "We should hang out together for the rest of the year. Too many idiots around like those three kids you knocked out. Let's watch out for each other! And you're like the only polite and cool guy in the class besides those stuck-up Uchihas. After what I saw today, I really want to study with you."
He stared at the offered hand and said questioningly, "Why not just ask your grandfather to help you with school. He obviously spends alot of time with you already."
"He's Hokage, so he's busy too. That and I would like to make new friends. It's my first day of classes resolution."
He narrowed his eyes. "Why?"
"Because having people who care about you always makes people happy," she replied cheerfully. "The more friends, the better."
At that, his shoulders dropped. "And it hurts when you lose them. No thank you, Tsunade-hime." Adjusting the strap of his bag on his shoulder, he left her to head home, his heart heavy as he thought about his parents. Once he was far enough, he looked over his shoulder to see her still staring after him and he closed his eyes tiredly.
The sounding of pounding footsteps suddenly reached his ears as she ran towards him. Slowly, he turned around and faced her as she faced him, breathing hard. "Your name."
His snake-like eyes widened slightly.
Tsunade sighed and said, "You know my name. I want to know yours."
"Pay attention to the attendance tomorrow."
"I want to hear it now," she said firmly.
"What's the point?" he asked blankly, making to turn around once more.
But she caught his wrist in her hand and stared up at him. "Name."
"Orochimaru," he said with some finality, pulling his hand out of her grasp and giving her his name so that she wouldn't break his arm or something. The sky rumbled and a few drop of rain hit his skin. Nodding to the school, he said, "Go back inside before you catch a cold."
She smiled slightly, peering up into his golden eyes. "Your name means snake..." When he didn't say anything, she said quietly, "Your eyes, they look so sad." Touching the necklace at her throat, she took a step towards him. "Just looking into them, makes me feel unhappy as well."
He muttered coldly, "What makes you think I'd care if you're sad, Tsunade?"
She smiled and shrugged. "Sometimes you have to take risks, like in gambling." Holding out her hand, she beamed up at him. "I am willing to bet that I am right for wanting to pick you as a friend, Orochimaru."
Starring down at the offered hand, he said coldly, "You should stop gambling, Tsunade-hime. You don't seem to have the luck for it." With that, he swept away from her and proceeded to head home for the third time. In the next second, he saw stars as her fist connected with his head and sent him flying into a tree. His head pounding and his ears ringing, he sat up and grimaced. He coughed as she jumped on top of him and grab a fistful of his robe.
"Look here Orochimaru!" she said, shaking him, not noticing that she was continuously banging his head against the tree. "It's not everyday I ask someone to be friends with! Stop being sulky -"
"Tsuna!"
She looked over her shoulder as her grandfather put his hands to his cheeks and had his mouth hanging wide open. Looking down, she gasped as she realized that she had completely knocked Orochimaru out and might have even given him a concussion.
Darkwings13:
-The Naruto Saga stated that the three sannin all became gennin at age 6.
-In episode 114 of Naruto Shippuden, it shows Orochimaru kneeling at his parents grave, laying down flowers and look very sad. When he and Sarutobi had a talk about his parents reincarnating and that he will get to see them again, he looks down at the snake skin, eager and happy at the thought. This shows that he was very fond of and misses his parents greatly. Jiraiya even commented that his parents death and the painful memories were perhaps one of the reasons why Orochimaru turned out the way he did.
-In episode 366 of Naruto Shippuden, when the First Hokage asked who was the current Hokage, Orochimaru tells him that it's Tsunade (he called her Tsunade-hime, which I've decided to use as her nickname by Oro in the story) and Hashirama then went all depressed. Then he stated that he greatly spoiled Tsunade and was responsible for her picking up his habit of gambling, but laughing fondly at the memory of her after, showing that he was very close to his granddaughter when he was still alive. By the way she's knocking everyone out in my story, I can see why Hashirama is afraid of the village's future xD
-I am very fond of Jiraiya, even though I'm shipping Tsunade with Orochimaru. I think those three were the best team ever haha.
Whew, this is going to be my first fanfiction for the Naruto universe! I'm nervous but quite excited at the same time. For this story, I want to analyze the transformation that Orochimaru goes through. From being a kid, to a villain, to changing and learning from his mistake in the end. I honestly think he's one of the deepest character in the anime/manga and to finally get a chance to explore his character, is making me quite happy. And yes, I'm totally shipping Orotsu. For Orochimaru, Jiraiya and Tsunade are the closest people he's ever been to and respected. I will expand on this throughout the story and try to use as many evidence as I can. Right now, I will focus abit on Orochimaru and Tsunade knowing each other before they were put on the same team together, under Sarutobi and with Jiraiya.