Kabuto couldn't see what was wrong. Orochimaru wasn't in pain; he hadn't said anything remotely offensive of emotional, and he knew he hadn't said anything upsetting. Unless Orochimaru wasn't telling him something? "Orochimaru-sama, please," Kabuto murmured, finishing the bandages on Orochimaru's left arm and gently setting it down between them. He put down the bandages, tape, and ointment to put his arm around Orochimaru, using his other hand to take the sannin's face in his hand and gently turn it to face him. "Please, tell me, did I hurt you? In word or action?"

Orochimaru found himself unable to answer.

Instead, he simply wrenched his face away from Kabuto, leaning on the genin's shoulder and simply letting go of fifty year's worth of tears. How long since he last cried? His tears had dried up, he thought; apparently, he was wrong. Why was he crying, anyway? Was it just the buildup of stress, or was it something deeper? Was it killing Sarutobi? Orochimaru didn't even know. All he did know was that he craved the touch of another human-and touch that wouldn't bring him pain and suffering, as it usually had in the past. Orochimaru had no idea what that felt like, actually. He hadn't felt it since his parents were alive…when he was maybe four…was the last time he ever felt their touch. What did it even feel like to be touched without pain, or simply for the pleasure of having another human being so close? Orochimaru couldn't even bear to speak; he felt so humiliated, it wasn't even funny. But then again, what did he have to lose? Orochimaru was about to ask, but Kabuto stopped him.

A gentle hand wiped away his tears, using the pads of his fingertips to clear the water from Orochimaru's porcelain cheeks. Orochimaru found himself comforted more than words express by the simple gesture; he shifted closer to Kabuto, taking slow, shaky breaths to try to calm his sobs. Kabuto seemed to understand that he was upset, and put his arms around Orochimaru, occasionally reaching up to dry his tears again. The tears had mostly stopped by now, though: Orochimaru had barely cried, but it was still exhausting, given that he hadn't cried in what must have been nearly half a century. Still, it felt kind of good…like he was letting everything out.

"Calmed down a bit?"

Orochimaru wordlessly nodded, trying to sit up and move away from Kabuto. As good as that had felt for a little while, there was nothing but shame coursing through his veins like liquid mercury now. Still, Kabuto moved after him, but this time, he moved around to Orochimaru's other side and began bandaging that arm. He had to offer Orochimaru as much comfort as soon as possible. So, Kabuto finished bandaging Orochimaru's arms as quickly as possible, and took him straight to his bedroom when he was done. He sat with Orochimaru until the sannin fell asleep, and then went to see if he couldn't find some milder medication for the snake.

"Kabuto?"

Tayuya was standing at the doorway, waiting for Kabuto right outside Orochimaru's suite. She immediately ran up to him, and began questioning him on Orochimaru's condition. "Is he okay?" she started. "Did he ever calm down? How's he feeling right now? Is he awake?"

"I order, yes, yes, okay, and no."

Tayuya sighed with defeat. She had really wanted to see Orochimaru; she wanted to do something, anything! She felt so useless, just hanging around like this.

"If you want to help, you can make him some tea and leave it next to the bed. I'm going to find some medication; I'll be back shortly."

"What kind is his favorite?" Tayuya asked.

"Jasmine is his favorite," Kabuto replied immediately. "And then green, and then white. Chinese Oo Long is best if you want him to sleep easier. I don't understand how that works, so I just give it to him whenever he asks for it. Therefore, I suggest either jasmine or the Chinese tea."

Tayuya nodded and immediately ran off to see to Orochimaru, and Kabuto went back down to his lab. It seemed like he was progressing in his relationship with Orochimaru-to say the incident in the shower wasn't rattling him now would be considered the biggest lie ever told in the history of humankind. It had brutally shaken Kabuto to see Orochimaru so broken: it was all he could do to act normal, for Orochimaru's sake. Kabuto hated seeing Orochimaru like this: he was depressed all the time, and could rarely even get out of bed anymore. When he slept, it was a deep, fitful, restless sleep, plagued with dreams of Sarutobi's last curse. And when he didn't sleep, he was screaming in agony. Kabuto could do nothing more than inject painkillers and console Orochimaru over the loss. Orochimaru was brutal to deal with at this point-even Kabuto was having trouble dealing with him. But, after only a few days, Kabuto figured out that Orochimaru wasn't really angry-he was afraid. And, he was having lapses in confidence that Kabuto had never seen before-not once.

And it broke Kabuto's heart.

He simply couldn't sit there and watch Orochimaru suffer, but he hated to leave his master's side, as well. Orochimaru needed him, much as no one except Kabuto liked to admit. Kabuto had gone down to the lab where he normally experimented with medication to try to figure something for Orochimaru. Maybe a stronger painkiller with less addictive side effects? That was the project at current. And so far, it wasn't getting any further than hypotheses and the first few steps of an experiment. It never got into an advanced stage-it failed every time.

"Kabuto-sensei?"

Kabuto turned slightly, glancing over his shoulder to acknowledge Sakon. "What?" he asked tiredly. He really didn't want to deal with whatever it was right now…

"Orochimaru-sama wants you," was all the teen offered. Kabuto sighed. That could mean anything from "Orochimaru's dying and needs you to hear his last words," to "Orochimaru's being a bitch and you better shoot him with something very potent before he kills everything in living sight."

"Why exactly does he need me?" Kabuto probed, trying to dig further down into the statement. "Did he ask for me, or did he just kind of scream at you in frustration?"

Sakon shook his head. "Tayuya went in with the jasmine tea, and he actually took it. It threw us all for a loop, but eventually he turned us away and just asked for you."

Kabuto sighed. If it went like Sakon told it, Orochimaru might be in seriously deep trouble. "I'll be right there," he said, "Go ahead, and let him know I'm coming. But don't tell him why I'm not there with you."

"Painkiller?"

"Even better. Sedative."

"It's a beautiful thing."

Kabuto stepped into the lab, flicked on the lights, and immediately grabbed a syringe and needle of sedative from the top shelf of a cabinet. He locked the cabinet, stuck the key in his kunai pouch, and then exited the lab and returned to Orochimaru's room. As he entered the bedroom, his eyes fell upon and interesting sight:

Tayuya was sitting with Orochimaru, helping him drink.

"Much better mood, I'll say that," Kabuto grunted, setting the sedative down on the table next to Orochimaru's bed. "Guess I won't need that. Anyway, did you want me, Orochimaru-sama?"

Orochimaru nodded. "It's too bad," he whispered. "I know I told you earlier not to...but I want you to find another body for me."

Cause we are broken
What must we do to restore
Our innocence
And all the promise we adored
Give us life again cause we just wanna be whole

Kabuto nodded, finding his mouth suddenly run dry. Orochimaru was actually admitting to weakness? He must be desperate! Kabuto rushed off immediately, his only aim to secure the best body they had for Orochimaru. He would also need to find Sasuke…drag that little imp back. He could put the Sounds in charge of that, though. He need not go personally. Besides, Orochimaru needed him now, more than ever. With a quick order to Sakon, he left the room, his only aim to find a new body for Orochimaru.

OOOOOOOOOOOO

Orochimaru made the change into his new body very smoothly. Kabuto had to say, it was one of their smoother transitions, despite Orochimaru's handicap. The victim didn't fight much, and Orochimaru was able to easily overpower him. Kabuto had been with Kimimaro at the time, and watching on a security monitor. He had tried to cut off the blood-curdling screech as Orochimaru made his transfer, but he still managed to stir Kimimaro up. Well, not his original plan, but it certainly cut off a few minutes of persuasion. Really, Kimimaro did this to himself. Kabuto had to smirk in victory-inadvertently allowing Kimimaro to witness (sort of) the more gruesome side of Orochimaru's transfer had helped him! Kabuto returned to the monitors as soon as Kimimaro had left, checking on Orochimaru. He would be weak, certainly, but that was no matter. Nothing a good night's sleep couldn't cure. Kabuto turned off the monitors once more, moving as quickly as he could down to the basement levels of the complex-where Orochimaru was. His new body was now crumpled on the floor in a weakened heap, spent from the transfer. His old body lay a few feet away, completely lifeless and sprawled out as if in death. Well, Kabuto supposed it was death-but not nearly so as it was for mere mortals. Orochimaru's new body was on its knees, weight supported over its arms. His head was bowed, white hair reflecting a bit of the light in the room. But, as Kabuto watched, it began to lengthen, and also to darken. Ah, so that was why Orochimaru was so spent: the fatigue of the old body combined with the fatigue given by starting his change-of-face jutsu had brought him to his knees. And also, this body had just been through an intense fight…it would serve logic to think that Orochimaru was exhausted. Finally, his hair reached pitch blackness, and was about at his shoulder blades. His skin was changing rapidly to a very pale peach, and finally, to white. As Orochimaru lifted his head, Kabuto could see violet marking appear over Orochimaru's eyes, as if drawn by a painter's brush over a flawless white canvas. Kabuto had always been entranced by Orochimaru's jutsu, where he changed his face without genjutsu: it was simply beautiful to watch. Orochimaru's features began to sharpen, changing from the soft, smooth features of the former owner of the body to Orochimaru's sharp cheekbones, strong jaw, and long nose. His lips smoothed a bit, but also filled out a little more than previously. His eyes were the last to change: flecks of gold began to work their way through the black of the man's eyes, until they spread outwards like pools of water and completely took over. The only black that remained was the vertical pupil that Orochimaru possessed-his strongest likeness to a snake. Kabuto waited until Orochimaru's head fell again, and then approached him and knelt down on one knee in front of his master.

"Come," he said softly, offering a hand. "You need rest."

Orochimaru nodded, for once agreeing with Kabuto and going along with it without protest. Clearly, he, too, recognized the need. He accepted Kabuto's offer of help up, and Kabuto stood up first. He gently tugged Orochimaru up after him, taking the sannin's other hand halfway up and gently steadying him as he rose to his feet. Kabuto took Orochimaru straight upstairs, and then exited the bedroom to allow Orochimaru to change. This body had been wearing a typical Sound outfit, but it was caked with blood and grime. Kabuto knew Orochimaru would also want to shower as soon as possible-the body itself was almost as disgusting as the clothes. But for now, all he wanted was sleep. Kabuto re-entered the room as soon as he heard the lock click for the second time, and found Orochimaru clothed only in a pair of black pants and, not surprisingly, no shirt. Well, Kabuto was checking this body over as soon as possible-Orochimaru probably wanted him to do it now.

"Kabuto, would you please…?"

Kabuto nodded wordlessly, and stepped into the room, closing the door behind him. Orochimaru sat down on his bed, and Kabuto immediately began looking him over. He ran his hands over every surface he could find, making sure there were no abnormalities. As far as the arms, legs, feet, and hands went, Kabuto couldn't find anything. There were a few bruises and scratches from the fight this body had gone through, but, other than that, Kabuto could find nothing wrong with the body. He ran a quick check of the head and brain with a spark of healing chakra-nothing out of the ordinary. Kabuto then moved on to the chest and stomach area, gently pressing into the muscles to see if anything was out of place. Orochimaru leaned back, allowing Kabuto easier access to the lower portions of his stomach, nearing his hips. Still nothing! It appeared that they had gotten lucky with this one. Now, a blood test or two, and that would be all. Unless Orochimaru asked for further testing, and even then, there wasn't much else Kabuto could do.

"Now, I'll just need a blood sample, and that will be all," Kabuto said. "But that can wait until tomorrow. Also, if you would like me to test this body's sexual reproductive organs, I could do that-"

"If there's no cancer, leave it alone," Orochimaru snapped. "Speaking of things in passing, I am going to the bathroom. I'll let you know if everything works right."

Kabuto couldn't restrain his laughter at this comment. "Orochimaru-sama, there would have to be something seriously wrong to have your urinary tract screwed up!" he said, still laughing a bit. "I must say, though, knowing everything worked right would be wonderful. But please, don't take all night. I need to check for cancer."

"You're not funny," Orochimaru snapped, standing up and delivering Kabuto a swift kick to the thigh. Kabuto accepted it with a grunt of pain and another chuckle, but said nothing further. Orochimaru returned shortly thereafter with a grunted affirmation that, as far as he could tell, everything was in working order. Kabuto was pleased, but honestly hadn't expected anything other than an affirmative to the question.

"Now, as far as reproductive organs go, I would like to check to make sure everything's in proper order down there, as well," Kabuto said. "Judging by the development of the body, it's twenty-six. You won't need to worry too much about cancers or anything like that, so I won't screen you for that unless I see reason to. I still would like to take a look, though. Standard exam: you've been through it before. And I would know."

Orochimaru let out an audible groan. "Oh, my God," he mumbled. "You torture me, boy."

Kabuto gave Orochimaru a small smile. "It's my job," he said, almost regretfully. "And I don't care what you say, I am checking!"

"No you're not."

"Yes, I am."

"You are, aren't you?"

"Not a force in the world to make me change my mind."

"You want to get in my pants that bad?"

Kabuto found he wasn't sure if honesty was the best policy, after all. Ah, the perks to being a medic…

A/N: Lovely little scene at the end. I can timeskip or up the rating: you, the reviewers, get to choose. If I get no feedback, I do whatever the hell I want. Which will probably be up the rating. So please, let me know? Cookies!!