Part 6 – Brothers
I watched him hobble around for a bit. It seemed that he still hadn't gotten over the effects of whatever he'd trashed his system with. Almost funny really. Such a strong man reduced to clutching walls and holding back yelps when a particular nerve was struck. I caught him with someone and had to duck back behind a doorway to avoid laughing directly at him. He was getting help from a girl at least six years younger than he. But that still didn't stop him from working.
Orochimaru had returned to the room later after he left, when Kabuto really was asleep. He'd instructed me to follow him until it was apparent that he wasn't crippled anymore. He called it 'training under extreme conditions'. I didn't know what he meant until the first Chakra scalpel missed me by inches. Even a weakened Kabuto was moody.
"Stop trailing me already." He sighed, using the wall as his grip. "I'm fine."
"Sorry. It's a direct order." I grinned.
"Since when do you follow orders?"
"Since they included pissing you off."
"I can't get anything done with you hot on my tail all the time. And don't think I don't know when you're there…Your stealth skills suck."
I grunted, "Is that so?"
"Yes. It is so." He assured, "You have no control over your outflow of Chakra, and I can hear your heart beat."
"How the hell can you hear my heartbeat?"
"I'm a master in medical jutsu, Sasuke-kun. I can practically feel the blood pumping through your veins from where I stand."
"Then why don't' you tell me how to fix it, Mister Smarty pants."
"That sounded juvenile. But why in the hell would I help you against me? Do you think I'm that delusionally insane? I mean seriously. I'm twisted and probably mentally ill in some sick way, but I'm smart enough to know when I'm screwing myself over."
"But…Imagine how delighted Orochimaru will be that he doesn't have to waste the time teaching me!"
"Going straight for my weak spot…you are pure evil, I hope you know that."
"And to think I learned that much from only a week around the master himself." I retorted.
"You think I'm evil now? Oh child, you don't want me training you."
I cocked my head, "What the hell kinda damage could you do to me if I'm just training to avoid detection?"
"Try it. Sometime in the next hour I want to you follow me. If I know you're there, I promise...you will understand what I mean. Until then, I have things to do!" He waved and flitted out of sight in true ninja style.
"That bastard…" I said aloud to no one other than myself. "He wasn't nearly as injured as he acted." I frowned and folded my arms. He truly was more effort than he was worth.
So I waited around idly for a while. I knew it would be pointless to go in exactly one hour because he would have been expecting me, so I opted for the opposite approach. I started to search out his Chakra with my Sharingan after only about thirty minutes. Unfortunately I detected that he was very close, if not in the same room as Orochimaru. And after waiting a while it seemed like it was going to stay that way.
I used a low profile jutsu to hide myself from view and tried to mask my Chakra so there was no trace of me. I stepped soundlessly along the hallway. In the week I'd been there, I made sure to learn every weakness in the floor so I could avoid them if I needed to. Actually I remember learning them because of that damn medic. He had habits of walking soundlessly. I suppose that comes from being a sound ninja.
I snuck just a few feet short of the room where he was. Test me, will he? We'll see.
"So, now you're playing cat and mouse with my protégé?" I heard Orochimaru's voice. "And here I had sent him after you because I was worried."
"You don't worry,Orochimaru-sama. You're still angry with me for that stunt I pulled yesterday, I'm sure." Kabuto replied and I could see him laying out his medical instruments and inspecting them.
"Perhaps, but for a good reason. You're reckless and I depend very greatly on you. "
"I know and I apologize, Orochimaru-sama. It will not happen again. I promise."
"Good. I would hate to have to rely on only Sasuke as my entertainment because you got yourself foolishly killed by your own concoctions."
"That makes me feel very loved, master. Oh and Orochimaru-sama?"
"Yes?"
"You should really spend some time honing Sasuke's stealth skills."
The Sannin sighed and I glared at Kabuto through the wall. "Yes, I'm aware he's poor at it. Amusing how he tries."
"No kidding." Silence followed and I worried a little. A thud sound and a sharp object slicing through the wall and straight through my shoulder made me drop to the floor with a gasp. I placed a hand over the gaping hole in my shoulder. Two pairs of feet appeared in front of me. I looked up, only slightly irritated.
Please…I was pissed.
"What the hell! Are you trying to kill me?!"
"If I were trying to kill you, Sasuke, you'd be dead and Orochimaru-sama would be wringing my neck. I told you that you wouldn't like it if you tried to stealth train with me. Next time, I'll lecture you."
"That's more painful than death, Sasuke." The snakelike man added and I coughed in surprise.
"Let me heal that." The silver haired medic kneeled next to me and concentrated his Chakra, like the times before. "Little brothers are so annoying."
"Yeah well older brothers are jackasses!"
"Takes one to know one, Sasuke-chan." He smirked at me like usual. I swear one day I will backhand that smirk off his face and on to another man's face so I can smack it off him too!
"Oh and you patronize me for maturity!"
"Children, knock it off before I ground both of you. Tomorrow, Sasuke, you're going to stealth train with me. Because I fear Kabuto will kill you too quickly and he's right. You need it. But, you will also be required to spend time with Kabuto. An hour every day at least."
I opened my mouth to protest but the medic himself beat me to it.
"What!? You can't be serious Orochimaru-sama!"
"He can learn a great deal from you and you need to get used to him. He's an important part of our village now. And before you start sputtering like a fool, you're not being replaced or punished. After all, shouldn't 'brothers' bond?" He chuckled walking his way out of the room.
"I'm going to kill you." I glared at Kabuto.
"Come and try it punk."
"And I expect no fatalities." The snake's voice echoed from the corridor.
I edited my statement, "I'm going to kick your ass."
"Come and try it punk."
"Much better. Now, play nice. Your hour starts now." He disappeared completely. Where he goes, I have no idea and I probably don't want to have an idea.
"This is all your fault." I accused.
"Oh, shut up."
To be continued…