Chapter 10—Discovered

Tsunade sat up slowly, drew her knees up to her chest, and put her head down. Not an hour ago she had been so happy, but now Inko was dead, Orochimaru was gone, and she had nowhere to go.

She wanted to talk to Jiraiya. He'd always been a good friend; someone she could talk to and rely on when things got too overwhelming. But he was at the village and she couldn't risk returning so soon.

Then, with a slight shudder, she realized that he might not be so understanding this time. What if he couldn't accept the choice she had just made?

Tsunade closed her eyes. I can't go back to the village, she thought again. And I can't stay here. My only option is to try to find Orochimaru. The image of Orochimaru glaring down at her with murderous intent flashed across her mind and she shuddered slightly. Whatever that may bring.

She took a deep breath and raised her head. She was about to stand when Pakkun came tearing through the trees in the distance and skidded to a stop in front of her. Tsunade froze, sure that Kakashi would not be far behind. There was nothing she could do. Even if she ran now, Pakkun had seen her. Her eyes shifted to the black scorch on the ground as she tried to think of what she could say, but nothing occurred to her.

Seconds later, Kakashi and Yamato emerged from the trees and ran up to them.

"Thanks, Pakkun," Kakashi said.

Pakkun bobbed his head in a slight nod. "No problem." He threw a knowing glance at the spot where Inko had died and then vanished in a cloud of white smoke.

Kakashi went to Tsunade and crouched beside her. "Lady Tsunade…" he said quietly but Tsunade kept her eyes fixed on the ground.

"…Where's Inko," Yamato asked slowly, looking around.

Kakashi had not missed the look Pakkun had given the black mark on the ground before he'd left. They had been tracking Inko's scent but Pakkun had given up the trail. It hardly took a moment for Kakashi to realize why. He turned back to Tsunade. "Are you hurt?" he asked her.

Tsunade shook her head then gathered her strength to answer, "No, I'm all right." She stood slowly as Yamato came over to them.

"What happened?" Kakashi asked.

"…Orochimaru…" Tsunade said. "She… She died too quickly. I couldn't save her."

"Lady Tsunade… Where have you been?" Yamato asked, distrust clear in his tone.

"Didn't Jiraiya tell you?" Tsunade answered, barely breathing. She knew there was almost no chance of his excuse matching up with finding her out here now.

"Maybe," Yamato said. "But why don't you tell us anyway?"

She looked from Yamato to Kakashi. They were both watching her, waiting for an answer, but she couldn't speak.

"What's going on, Lady Tsunade?" Kakashi asked, a slight urgency under his words. "What are you doing out here?"

"I… I don't know…" she breathed. Yamato and Kakashi exchanged suspicious and concerned glances.

"Let's go," Kakashi said after a moment. "You need to come back to the village."

Yamato took the lead and Tsunade followed, though a bit slowly. Kakashi stayed behind her, never letting her out of his sight.

[X]

After leaving Tsunade, Orochimaru traveled back to his main hideout, his anger and frustration calming the further he got from Konoha. Once inside the underground labyrinth, he headed for his room but ran across Kabuto in the hall.

"Lord Orochimaru," Kabuto said. "You're back early. Is everything all right?" He glanced over Orochimaru's injuries with a calculating, practiced eye but Orochimaru kept walking.

"I'm fine," he said in passing. "It's nothing I need you for." He continued to his room and closed the door behind him.

The room was pitch-black but Orochimaru did not bother to light the candles or torches. He sat on the edge of his bed and held his head, trying to will away the dull ache he felt. The darkness and quiet were soothing to him, and allowed him to think back on what had happened over the last few days.

Why did I go to Konoha? What have I been doing? Tsunade… and Jiraiya… the three–He sighed, then slowly started laughing. "No," he whispered. "Foolish." His hand closed into a fist and all humor faded from his face. "No more of this fooling around."