Last of the Spider-Clan

by FrivolousThoughts

Pīta Pāka, the last living member of the once great Shukeikō-Clan, has to make his own way in a tough ninja world with the amazing abilities gifted to him by his bloodline. He can do anything a spider can, and holding the wise words of his clan's nindō close to his heart, Pīta knows that with great power there must also come great responsibility.

11. Partners in Crime

Author's Note: Hey guys, sorry for the wait, I spent a good while on this chapter to get everything right. There's a lot of stuff in this one, a lot of fighting mostly. This chapter is all about Anko, Orochimaru and Pīta with a little side of Sakura.

I gave this one my all and I really hope you dig it, thanks!

Disclaimer: Spider-Man and all related characters are owned by Marvel and in turn, Disney. Naruto and all related characters are owned by Masashi Kishimoto, I own nothing.

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Partners in Crime (Forest of Death Arc)

It was quiet, a little too quiet for Anko Mitarashi's liking. The purple haired woman, a Tokubetsu-Jōnin belonging to the Village Hidden in the Leaves, had journeyed through the dangerous territory of the Forest of Death to find someone. Someone of vital importance to her, someone who had unknowingly shaped the very person she'd become. Someone who, despite their importance, sorely needed to die.

And Anko had taken it upon herself to shoulder that burden, that responsibility. For the someone she was after, a missing-nin by the name of Orochimaru, was a monster. A vile, horrible and cruel excuse for a human being that deserved nothing less than the cold black of death. It wouldn't have been quick either; Anko was intent on making the man suffer for all he'd done.

Countless deaths all attributed to him, countless lives he'd ruined, and countless individuals he'd touched and therefore tainted. Orochimaru cast a shadow of darkness everywhere he went, and it was high time somebody did something about it. That somebody was Anko, the man's former student.

She'd been one of many of course, back when the ninja was held in high regard, still in good standing with the Hokage and his village. Orochimaru was one of the legendary Yonin, a group of four of the most talented, powerful and highly skilled ninja of their time. The quartet counted Jiraiya, the Toad Sage amongst its members. The man was renowned for the series of adult novels he wrote titled Make Out, a series that Anko frequently found Kakashi reading.

The second member and arguably the most famous, specifically with aspiring female ninja, was Lady Tsunade. Famed for being one of the world's strongest Kunoichi and its greatest medical-nin, the woman was a force to be reckoned with. While Jiraiya's sparse visits to Konoha were attributed to his standing as a notorious hermit, Tsunade had simply abandoned the life of a ninja altogether due to constant emotional trauma over the years.

Third in line was another female, the only other ninja that had managed to match Tsunade's strength pound for pound and unbelievably, outmatch it. Madame Juria Kāpentā was one of the last spiders born into the world, their line and lineage growing thinner and thinner over the years. She was fast, strong and was unparalleled in the field of Taijutsu, being a hero to Might Guy himself.

Juria hadn't been seen for quite some time too, years in fact. She'd gone MIA during a mission with one of her former sensei, Madame Kasumi Webb. The woman's body had been retrieved while Juria was nowhere in sight, possibly driven off by the grief she felt due to the loss of her mentor. It wasn't known if she was still alive somewhere, though it was more likely that she'd died a long time ago.

It almost made Anko feel sorry for the Pāka kid in retrospect, every other spider had either died or gone missing. Must have been tough growing up with no-one to turn to, no-one to teach him the ways of his clan, his people. She wasn't worried though, he had a good head screwed onto those shoulders of his, he'd turn out fine.

Saving the worst for last, Orochimaru was an outright monster. He'd taken the trust of many young ninja and smashed it to smithereens by experimenting upon them, using them like his own personal human guinea pigs. Unfortunately, Anko knew this from experience, a very painful experience that still haunted her to this very day. What that man did to her, she wouldn't have wished on her worst enemy. A heart made of ice; maliciousness and selfishness were just some of the irredeemable qualities the S-Rank ninja possessed. Learning that he'd returned to the Leaf and had already murdered a young team of aspiring Chūnin no less, made Anko's blood boil.

She knew he had to be stopped, and she knew that she couldn't think of a single ninja that could've done the deed. Perhaps Kakashi but even that was reaching, Orochimaru wasn't regarded as a legend for nothing. Still, even knowing how outclassed she was, Anko did not feel comfortable sitting back and letting someone else handle the situation, potentially getting themselves killed in the process too.

The woman came to an abrupt stop on the wooden surface of a tree branch, her sandals landing with a dull thud as she span around to take stock of her surroundings. The baby blue sky held aloft overhead began to dim, changing and morphing in colour for every fraction of time that passed. It was getting late and she was no closer to finding the man than she had been an hour ago, she wasn't sure where she should've been looking if she was being completely honest with herself. Sprinting into the forest without a place to start searching hadn't been one of her smartest moves, something she was only now just realizing.

Anko ran a hand through her short purple hair, cursing to herself as the orange light of the setting sun pierced the thick canopy of the forest above. "If I were a psychopath, where would I be hiding?" The woman, twenty four years of age, murmured to herself as she shielded her eyes from the fading sunlight.

She narrowed those light brown orbs of hers as she precariously leaned over the edge of the branch she was stood on, finding a rather large trail of flattened bushes, flowers and disturbed soil below. It wasn't natural in occurrence; a powerful force had pushed through the area and left devastation in its wake. Anko was well aware of what had caused it; it was one of Orochimaru's signature Jutsu.

"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough," she once again muttered out loud, something she often did when she found herself alone.

The Tokubetsu-Jōnin averted her eyes to scan the surrounding area; she was trying to see if anything else had been left behind. Anything that might've told her where he'd gotten to after ripping up a small portion of the forest, which also begged a serious question in Anko's mind.

The high-ranking ninja of the Leaf stepped over the edge of the branch, letting herself fall to the brown Earth below. Her tanned trench coat billowed and flapped about in her wake, and she braced herself for the landing. Anko hit the ground sandals first, letting her smooth bare legs bend as she crouched and steadied herself for a moment.

After adjusting to the fall, Anko stood and surveyed the vicinity. "The question is, who or what was he attacking?" The expert tracker voiced her query to the open air, nothing but the sweet sound of birds tweeting and singing from afar filling her ears.

There'd been some kind of situation, that much was clear. And usually, situation's left their mark. As a tracker, it was in Anko's skillset to look for these particular marks. Blood spatter, torn clothes, discarded weapons but above all, footprints. Or sandal prints, specifically. She flashed a grin as she crouched, tracing the slightly faded imprint of a child's sandal in the soft dirt. The woman followed them with her light brown eyes, noting how they were joined by another pair of prints as they trailed off, further and further away from the scene.

It didn't take Anko long to pull at the thread, halting in a clearing as the prints disappeared. She'd have been disappointed with the dead end had she not laid eyes on a few shattered tree branches, droplets of blood clinging loosely to the sharp tips of grass blades, much like fresh dew on a particularly humid morning. The purple haired Kunoichi narrowed her eyes as she gazed up into the surrounding trees, spotting the scorched and charred bark of an unlucky redwood.

"Call it a gut feeling but… he couldn't have gotten far," Anko murmured, reaching up to rub the tell-tale mark of dark influence on her neck.

She wasn't sure if her curse mark was acting up because he was nearby or whether she was feeling ghost pains because of her paranoia, either way, Anko kept her eyes peeled and ears open as she scaled a tree using her Chakra. She bolted along the canopy of the forest, completely in her element as she moved, until finally, she was met with a strange and rather unsettling sight.

She'd found Orochimaru all right, half sunken into the trunk of a tree and looking a little worse for wear. "Well, isn't that the stuff of nightmares." Anko remarked flippantly, causing the man to slowly open his eyes and attempt a strained smile.

She could tell it was strained; half of the false feminine face he was wearing had fallen off. "Ah, Anko… pleasant as always." The dangerous criminal began to laugh, subtly, quietly and eerily.

Anko quirked a purple eyebrow, chills racing up and down her spine despite her disposition. "Something funny, creep?" She grilled, frowning as the situation was anything but hilarious.

"No, I'm simply touched. My old student seeking me out after so many years, you just can't control yourself, can you?" Orochimaru queried, attempting to spin the conversation around on the woman.

As though she was the crazy one, the damaged one, the certifiably insane one. It was the one thing Anko hated about him when she was a child, when she admired him and aspired to be just like him. How he twisted people's words, used them as verbal weapons against the owner, manipulated them and played mind games with them. She hated it then, and she hated it now.

Anko felt her fists involuntarily ball, a kneejerk reaction in the face of such an insult. "I sought you out because you senselessly murdered a group of kids right under my nose, do not get it twisted." She put the facts straight, though knew it wouldn't do much good.

Orochimaru's predatory eyes wandered for a moment, as if he was casually pondering something. "Murdered? Yes. Senselessly? No. I needed a way into the exams and an opportunity appeared, they proved useful even in death." He answered, openly and honestly.

It was a weakness, definitely. He knew it full well, had always known it. Despite how he'd left things with the young woman standing before him, upside down to his point of view funnily enough, he still felt the need to be honest. Perhaps it was because of their past relationship, their past history as sensei and student. Or perhaps it was simply because he wanted to see her reaction, wanted to get a rise out of her.

Anko met his expectations as her teeth smashed together, seething as she narrowed her eyes at the Yonin. "You're a monster," she hissed through the gaps in her pearly whites, her blood boiling with every nonchalant response he gave.

Orochimaru felt a smile tug at his lips; he took great pleasure in getting under most people's skin but Anko was another matter entirely. "For being practical and efficient? You wound me, girl." He feigned being hurt, his tone taking on one of disappointment.

Anko took a step forward and pointed at him, her hand practically shaking and twitching with rage. "You're here for something, that much is obvious. I don't know what and I don't know why but it stops, whatever you're planning stops right now." She forced out, stating her words as facts.

The dark haired demon before her, still weirdly hanging upside down and half inside a tree, narrowed his eyes. "Why, Anko… if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were threatening me." His voice carried an implied threat of its own, sharp, dangerous and very real.

Anko knew him well, extraordinarily well in fact. She knew he wasn't one to beat around the bush, he was the kind of person that acted on a violent impulse, consequences be damned. That was the difference between the two of them; Anko was a functioning psychopath while Orochimaru was a straight up psychopath. Sure, every now and then she thought about murdering a few idiots that severely agitated her but she didn't do it. She repressed those thoughts and got over them, little things called morals keeping her firmly in check.

"That's because I am, milquetoast." The woman insulted, not quite an accurate insult but she was angry, it was the first thing that came to mind.

Orochimaru shook his head; he'd expected her to resort to childish tactics. "Your immaturity astounds me, girl. You really haven't changed one bit, have you? Still that lonely little child, crying herself to sleep at night because she wasn't good enough for her sensei." He retaliated with something admittedly below the belt, but he wasn't the kind of person to wear kid gloves.

Anko scoffed, folding her arms over her rather large chest. "That's rich coming from Mister Egomaniac himself, you can't survive without somehow being the centre of attention. And you'll do anything to put yourself in that spot, that makes you dangerous." She analysed him right back, scowling with every word spoken.

Orochimaru didn't seem fazed in the slightest, if the smirk on his snake-like lips were anything to go by; he seemed to have been enjoying himself. "You're hiding behind a wall of humour and eccentricities because you're afraid of letting someone get close again; you're terrified they'll dump you like yesterday's trash… just like I did." He cut deep once again and for a moment, he thought he had her.

Until Anko grinned viciously, confusing the Shinobi slightly. "And you're scared of your own mortality, desperately trying to run away from the fact that someday, you're gonna bite it just like the rest of us. Face it, gramps. The race is over, you lost." She bluntly explained, resting her hands on her shapely hips and offering him a smug smile.

Orochimaru set his jaw, she knew him all too well. "Funny," he shortly admitted, even as a child, the girl had always possessed a sharp wit unlike anything he'd ever seen.

It was Anko's turn for honesty, unafraid to speak it as everything was pretty much out on the table already. "If I couldn't laugh, I'd cry." Quite a sad truth escaped her lips; it was no wonder why she distanced herself from so many of her fellow ninja with her extreme sense of humour.

"It might seem a little hard to believe but… I've actually enjoyed this, catching up with you, mean spirited as it was. Nevertheless, I'm occupied with far more important matters." Orochimaru revealed, ready to take his leave and once again, disappear on the woman.

Anko took yet another step forward, demanding his attention. "More important than your ex-student?" She questioned in jest, she wasn't that full of herself.

Orochimaru showcased more of that brutal honesty he was known for, offering a dry smirk. "Yes, now if you'll excuse me." He hit back, ready to fade into the trunk of the tree completely.

The purple haired Kunoichi, an elite ninja of her village, raised her arm and pointed it at the man. "Oh no, we're not done here. Striking Shadow Snake!" She called out, letting several emerald green serpents wind out of her trench coat sleeve and dart their way towards the easy target.

They hit their mark with precise aim, splintering wood as they embedded themselves deep into the bark of the tree, all around Orochimaru. "You're not going anywhere until we've had a nice long chat!" Anko once again yelled, before pulling with all her might.

The Yonin was yanked out of the tree like a splinter from a wound; he let the momentum carry him clear across the vast surface of the gigantic tree-branch. Anko wasted no time in whipping out her kunai knife, pulling it free from its holstered perch on her bare thigh. She swiped in a clean arc, searing Orochimaru clean in half across the waist as he passed her by.

She span on her heel, light brown eyes narrowed as she watched dark and dingy mud fall and splatter on the wooden surface of their confrontation. "Mud clone… still as cowardly as ever," she muttered bitterly, immediately on guard as her opponent was nowhere in sight.

Anko scanned each and every inch of her surroundings, though it was made all the more harder as the sky continued to darken and challenge her vision. "Is it so wrong to implement strategy? Utilize tactics? Or would you rather I fight like you? Just blindly hack and slash until everything stops moving," Orochimaru's voice reached her ears, though she couldn't place it for the life of her.

She gripped the short hilt of her kunai even tighter, making careful measured movements as she wanted to avoid getting caught by surprise. "Sweet talker," she quipped, a grim smile plastered across her lips.

Of course, the smile disappeared when Anko realized there was a presence standing directly behind her. The woman didn't wait, she instantly turned and let her hand fly out, swiping where she assumed his head would've been. The knife didn't reach flesh and bone, her wrist was easily caught and all momentum ceased. Anko ignored the tell-tale smile that decorated his face, hopping into the air and bringing her leg about in one swift movement.

Orochimaru, naturally, evaded the desperate attack with ease. "Your senses have dulled, girl." He berated, though the kick had distracted him long enough for her to wriggle loose and put some distance between the two of them.

Anko cursed as she handsprung backwards, landing shakily as extreme acrobatics were always a risk in the heat of a battle. "Bite me," she childishly responded, reaching into the inside pocket of her trench coat to offer the man a present.

Orochimaru already knew what she was going to do, even before the handful of senbon needles had left their owner, slicing their way through the air towards him. "With pleasure," he replied, without missing a beat as he side-stepped the hard to see projectiles.

Once again, Anko was simply stalling for time. Kunai knives and senbon needles were not going to slow him down, but they did provide a little room to breathe as she cycled through a number of hand signs. The man closed the distance in an instant, showing off his incredible speed. But a tad too late, not fast enough to stop Anko from finishing whatever Jutsu she had in store for him.

"Snake Arm Battering Ram!" She exclaimed, dumbfounding the S-Rank criminal as he'd never heard of such a thing and he taught the woman everything she knew.

A particularly long, thick skinned snake slithered its way out of her sleeve and down her arm, twisting itself around the limb, its tough and hardy head forming a protective shield over her fist. Anko had to react fast as her former mentor attempted to wrap her up into a bear hug, and she knew if he managed that, the fight would've been over in an instant.

She swiped one of his arms away and reeled back, putting everything she had into a particularly bone shattering blow. She managed to catch the Shinobi clean in the jaw, his pale skin grazed as he stumbled back, his golden snake-like eyes slightly widening. The man paused, taking a small moment to press his fingers against his jaw, gently tracing the sore, bruised skin.

"I actually felt that," he spoke quietly; it had been the second time that day he'd been surprised in a bout.

It was then that Anko realized just how much of a complex he must have had, to have been unchallenged in a fight for so long. "Heartless jerk like you, I'm sure you'll get over it." She didn't care though, simply rubbing salt into the wound with a little sass for good measure.

The expert tracker grinned before charging him, swinging and striking with her snake-clad battering ram and forcing Orochimaru onto the defensive. The dark haired monster moved and swayed with the fluidity of a serpent, bypassing his former pupil's attacks with ease and frustrating her all the more. Her ex-teacher paused when his back met the ridged surface of solid bark; she'd managed to back him up against one of the many expansive trees in the vicinity.

Anko lashed out with everything she had in one resonating blow, Orochimaru just barely snapped his head to one side as her snake covered fist drilled itself into the wood behind him. "Positively ferocious," he complimented, before swiftly palming her directly in the chest.

Anko was immediately lifted off of her feet, being carried backwards with a little show of superhuman strength. "Any more new techniques I should know about?" The killer queried, pressing forward as the woman rolled and landed.

With one palm pressed against the surface of the enormous tree-branch they were stood on and the other snake sporting one poised and ready to strike, Anko's trench coat draped around her as she crouched low to the floor beneath her. "I've got a few more up my sleeve, sure. Snake Splitting Lasso!" Anko called out, the snake wrapped around her arm dispelling as she cycled through more hand signs.

Orochimaru was about to react when yet another snake shot itself out of Anko's seemingly bottomless sleeve, finding himself intrigued when the snake literally split up in mid-flight, resembling several pieces of thick sturdy rope. His own curiosity ensured that they ensnared him, wrapping around his shoulders, chest and arms tightly, pinning the latter to his torso. Naturally, he tested their strength by gradually attempting to break free only to find surprising resistance.

Anko watched her old mentor, stood there struggling to break free of his bonds. "I wouldn't bother, those bindings are Chakra infused. The more you struggle, the tighter they'll get until eventually, they'll saw right through you. On second thought, please struggle." She drew his attention with a flashy grin, folding her arms as their eyes met for a moment.

Orochimaru had to admit, he was impressed. "My my… what have you been using these for?" He mocked, his snake-like tongue pushing past his teeth and lips to lick the air.

Anko narrowed those light brown pupil-less eyes at him, setting her jaw as her temper began to rise. "Shut up. I have questions, questions that demand answers and you're going to give them to me." She ordered, coaxing a dry laugh out of the man.

He arched an intrigued eyebrow; the Anko he used to know was never one to get so serious. "I don't remember you being this assertive," Orochimaru recalled, admittedly with a smidgen of fondness that he'd buried deep long ago.

"People change," she bluntly responded, a little tired of the constant back and forth between the two of them.

Orochimaru let a scoff die in his throat; her words weren't exactly something he agreed with himself. "Do they really?" He dared to challenge them, hoping to pull her into yet another long winded discussion that went nowhere.

Anko ignored him, she liked to talk but she was done with his mind games. "First question, are you here to assassinate Lord Hokage?" She spouted off, short and to the point.

Orochimaru was actually a little caught off-guard with how frank the query was, she certainly didn't beat around the bush. "Truthfully? No… at least, not right now." He answered honestly, though whether the purple haired ninja chose to believe him was another matter entirely.

He wasn't exactly the most trustworthy of individuals, and that was a serious understatement. "If you're not here for that, then what are you here for?" Anko followed up, curiosity and suspicion lacing her usually sharp and carefree tone.

The Yonin shrugged, as much as he could've managed anyway with his arms strapped to his torso. "Personal business," he replied, once again offering a fairly vague response.

Anko clicked her tongue, she wasn't entirely sure she was going to get anywhere with him. "What kind of business?" She went a little more specific with her next question; her patience was starting to wear a little thin.

Orochimaru let a mischievous smirk dance across his pale, somewhat angular face. "The personal kind," he mocked, employing a little role reversal as he played the fool while Anko assumed a straight face.

Anko didn't seem to find it so fun, reaching down to her thigh holster to pull her kunai free. "One more smartass answer like that and I cut your tongue out, snake." She warned, raising the blade and holding it level with her face.

Orochimaru eyed the portable weapon with disinterest, he wasn't particularly worried. "I hope you can back that threat up, girl." He offered a warning himself, though worded it in a less blatant way.

Again, Anko ignored him. "You murdered three Genin from Kusagakure, the Village Hidden in the Grass, have you harmed any other students since then?" She threw a fourth question his way, slight concern evident in her usually slick voice.

Anybody else might've missed it, but not Orochimaru. "Define harmed," he hit back, picking up on the woman's uncharacteristic worry.

The Tokubetsu-Jōnin felt a wave of anger pass through her body, she had to close her eyes and compose herself before carrying on with her interrogation. "Answer the question," she ordered, her tone low and sharper than a razor's edge.

Orochimaru attempted to gesture, a little wave of his hand to showcase his flippancy. "I may have roughed up one or two, yes. I was even pleasantly surprised by one of them, Sasuke I think his name was." Though it looked a little weird, his arms were still held securely in place.

Anko's sour disposition immediately morphed into one of anxiousness, the fear in her eyes replacing the aggression. "What did you do to him?!" She demanded to know, snarling at the man like a wild animal.

Orochimaru had been sat in the hot seat long enough; he'd entertained the woman's constant grilling as a courtesy more than anything else. "The exact same thing I did to you, Anko." He made his move, employing the use of his uncanny ability to morph and elongate his body at will.

Stretching and contorting, Orochimaru resembled the long winding form of a snake as he slipped free of his bonds. Anko had already side-flipped out of the way as the cold-blooded killer dived right for her, smashing into the wooden surface of the tree-branch. His body shortened and he turned on the spot, flashing his sharp fangs at the woman.

"You won't get away with this!" Anko hissed; sweat beginning to dampen her fringe as it rolled down her face.

Orochimaru cackled, the simple sound of laughter incredibly out of place when used by his chilling and sinister tone. "And who's going to stop me? You? The only reason you're still alive is because I have allowed it, Anko. Face it; you're outclassed in every conceivable way." He spoke honestly, there were few ninja who posed a threat to him and his former student certainly did not make that very short list.

Anko wasn't about to correct him, he was so far out of her league it wasn't even funny. "Not every way…" But that was what an ace in the hole was for, to even the odds or so to speak.

The first thing Anko did was take her kunai knife and slowly drag the blade across the palm of her hand, letting her own blood leak out of the wound openly. "Summoning Jutsu!" She called out, cycling through several familiar hand signs before she slammed her palm into the rough surface of the tree-branch beneath her sandals.

A giant cloud of smoke engulfed the area and the very Earth rumbled for a solid minute, Orochimaru was silently cursing to himself as he knew full well what Anko had done. His eyes didn't widen in surprise for there was none, a frown traced his lips however as he gazed upwards at Anko, stood atop the head of a towering cobra snake.

The snake, which was stark black in colour and decorated with two thin grey stripes running along its winding body, hissed at the tiny morsel below it. "You remember Tsuki, right? The contract you let me sign all those years ago?" Anko felt the need to remind the man, but he didn't need it.

"Worst mistake I ever made," Orochimaru admitted, he really had no idea what he'd been thinking when he'd allowed her the use of a summoning contract.

Anko crouched down on the creature's gargantuan head, petting the diamond patterned hide affectionately. "Say hi to the bad man, Tsuki." She requested, employing the use of an overly childish tone of voice, as though she were speaking to a pet.

Tsuki lowered her head, allowing Anko to stand somewhat face to face with her old sensei. "Hi to the bad man, Tsuki." The snake, female in gender and quite a lot like her human friend in personality, repeated playfully.

Anko let a short laugh escape her lips, flashing her pearly whites the man's way as the odds were now clearly in her favour. "Ha, classic." She fondly murmured, placing her hands on her curvy waist as she waited for the criminal's next move.

Orochimaru couldn't resist the urge to give his golden eyes a good roll, one of them had been more than enough to have to tolerate. "You're insufferable," he insulted, though Anko took it in stride as she waved him off.

"Charmer," she cheekily replied, before snapping her fingers.

The result was instantaneous as Tsuki raised her thick, armoured head high and brought it down hard. Orochimaru just barely managed to leap clear, soaring as far as he could as Tsuki completely demolished the tree he and his student had been battling on. The Forest of Death rumbled with the collapse of one of its many oxygen giving inhabitants, the sound was so great, so deafening that it could've easily been mistaken for an earthquake.

Anko stood to her full height as she recovered from the impact, Tsuki doing much of the same as she'd just used her entire body to hammer a redwood taller than her into smithereens. "Yee haw! We got ourselves a runner, girl!" The woman pointed off in the distance, spying the shrinking form of Orochimaru.

Tsuki didn't need the go ahead to give chase, darting forward and pulverizing everything in her path. "You get weirder and weirder every time you summon me," she addressed her ally, a woman she'd known ever since they were both children.

Anko shrugged; weird was a compliment to her. "Which, admittedly, is few and far between." She highlighted, feeling invincible with her larger than life weapon in her command.

Tsuki blew a bout of warm air through her slit-shaped nostrils, her predatory eyes honing in on Orochimaru. "Must be a special occasion," she remarked, finally reaching the Yonin.

The larger than life reptile cut the man's path off, bulldozing gatherings of boulders, groves of trees and thickets of bushes, forcing him to halt and attempt to press on in the opposite direction. With his back to her, Tsuki brought her massive rattling tail about and swiftly swatted Orochimaru as though he was a mere insect. Despite his immense power, he was just as susceptible to gravity as anyone else.

The pale skinned Shinobi was sent careening into a nearby tree, hitting the trunk with the right side of his torso and spinning out. He hit the grass ground, hands balling into fists as they clenched fine soil in anger and frustration. Slowly, he climbed to his feet and was met with the overbearing sight of Tsuki menacingly stalking her way toward him.

For the second time that day, Orochimaru brought his thumb to his mouth and nipped the digit with his razor sharp fangs. "Fine, have it your way." He muttered, running his freshly bleeding thumb down the summoning tattoo on his left forearm.

"Summoning Jutsu!" The missing-nin bellowed, cycling through a short series of hand signs and stopping Anko's companion dead in its tracks.

More smoke engulfed the area, thick and rolling as it spread in every direction. It didn't take long for it to clear, and Anko's light brown eyes gazed upon a sight she'd been expecting. Orochimaru was perched atop his own summoned snake, the very same one that unbeknownst to her, he'd already used that day. While it did stand at a monstrous height, it still didn't quite reach Tsuki's towering form.

To its credit though, the ebony coloured serpent didn't seem at all fazed by the larger species. "Cute," Tsuki hissed, her forked tongue tasting the air as her slit-shaped pupils locked on the smaller specimen of her own kind.

Whilst Tsuki dwarfed the opposing snake, Anko figured that it might have been faster than her ally. "Don't let its size fool you; the biggest predator doesn't always come out on top. I once saw a wolverine take down a bear… that was a strange weekend," the questionably garbed woman advised, earning what she guessed to have been a nod out of the snake.

Tsuki's eyes shifted their focus from the shorter snake to its pale master, the man that had caused her friend so much pain. "I can do whatever I want to him though, right?" She asked, her feminine voice betraying her immense stature.

Anko clicked her tongue, as if trying to decide then and there. "Go nuts," she finally settled, confidence lacing her voice for the first time during the battle.

Her stark black weapon shuddered with excitement; she'd been rearing to rip the Yonin piece by piece for years now. "Yay," she simply said, before darting forward with surprising speed.

Orochimaru urged his pet to meet her head on, and the two snakes collided in a show of brute force. Predictively, the smaller of the two came worse off, being thrown backwards and smashing everything in its path. Its long, winding body slammed to the ground with a dull, resounding thud. Its master just barely managed to keep himself steady atop its head, frowning as Tsuki prepared to follow up with another assault.

"Get up, you pathetic creature. Get up and fight!" Orochimaru ordered, watching as the snake did just that.

The reptile gingerly raised its head, feeling sore all over as it attempted to shake the impact off. "Put it down, Tsuki. Quick and clean, there's no need for it to suffer." Anko ordered, her affection for any and all snakes shining through a bit as she looked upon the injured one before her.

Tsuki didn't mind though, her opponent knew what it had been getting into. "Time to go night night, little guy." She mocked, before using her armoured head to strike forward with lightning speed.

However, the shorter snake proved faster, much more nimble than its larger counterpart. The creature darted to one side, catching Tsuki off-guard and completely surprising her as it sunk its fangs directly into her mile-long body. She hissed out in agony as spear-like teeth pierced her thick hide, allowing crimson coloured blood to leak out and stain the forest floor.

Anko felt her heart leap into her throat as her friend cried out in pain, the snake's twitching body almost shaking her loose of her perch. "Tsuki!" She called out, her voice full of fear and concern.

Tsuki answered her partner's call with immediate action, winding her rattling tail about to wrap it around her attacker's long neck. She pulled with all her might, tearing the snake off of her at the expense of a few chunks of her own diamond patterned flesh. She discarded the snake for a moment, forcing it away from her as she attempted to recover from her grisly injury.

Orochimaru felt a smirk stretch onto his lips, watching as Anko's summons bled openly. "Arrogance is a dangerous thing, girl. You said so yourself, size does not determine the outcome of every battle." He reminded her, drawing the woman's ire as he folded his arms.

"I didn't ask for your advice, you lost that privilege when you abandoned me!" Anko sneered back, fists balled and a desperate urge to wipe that smug look off his face growing inside her.

Orochimaru casually shrugged, shutting his eyes briefly in a nonchalant manner. "Some wounds never truly heal, I see." He observed, only serving to dig deeper under the woman's skin.

Tsuki hissed as she set her sights on the man and his predatory weapon once more, doing her best to ignore her wounds and push on. "Permission to crush him and his pet?" She queried, though Anko reasoned that it was more of a formality than anything else.

She seriously doubted a simple 'no' would've stopped the gargantuan snake, so she chose to grant her wish. "Permission granted," Anko shortly replied, bracing herself as Tsuki wasted no time.

The snake had already bolted, utilizing speed that betrayed her vast height. Tsuki bared her enormous fangs for all to see, ivory coloured and smoother than silk despite their fatal tips. She hit her mark, burying her fangs into the inferior snake's tail, ensuring she had a good firm grip on it. Before it or Orochimaru could retaliate, Tsuki lifted the creature as high as she could, even managing to break through the canopy above them.

She brought the snake back down in an arc, smashing it into the ground, hard. Its body destroyed everything in its way, shattering smaller trees completely and ripping the bigger ones in two. A narrow area of flattened forest was left behind as the snake lay prone and unmoving; Orochimaru had been thrown clear into the dense foliage surrounding them.

Once again, his momentum was halted completely as his back connected with the unyielding trunk of a towering and expansive oak tree. Tsuki rose to her full height, coming out of the battle triumphantly. The downed snake disappeared in a plume of smoke, vanishing into thin air as it left behind the scars of its actions on an unfortunate area of the Forest of Death. Anko patted her girl on the head, receiving an appreciative hiss in response.

Tsuki lowered her head to a nearby tree-branch, allowing Anko to hop off and stand on firm ground once again. "He's down; I think I can take him from here." She reasoned, gazing upon her summons properly for the first time that day.

Tsuki let her eyes leave the Leaf ninja for a moment, spying a hunched over Orochimaru trying to get his bearings. "Only if you're sure," she expressed her concerns, though Anko simply waved them off.

With her hands on her shapely hips, Anko shrugged. "Can never be too sure in this profession, but I think we've caused enough destruction for one day. Thanks for the assist, Tsuki." She winked at the towering reptile, who offered a nod of the head in return.

"I'm always up for a good scrap," her snake truthfully stated, watching as Anko dispelled the Summoning Jutsu.

The forest fell completely silent in the wake of the giant snake's departure, as if two gods had brought their wrath down upon the Earth before receding. Anko heard crickets chirping in the distance, playing their legs like a violin, completely unaware as to what had just transpired. She turned, her trench coat billowing behind her as sweat dampened her underarms and back.

She was exhausted but despite that, it didn't take her long to reach her former teacher. "Had enough?" Anko greeted the man with a question, a question she spat at him.

Orochimaru was crouching, one hand pressed against the jagged bark of the tree for support and the other holding his side in slight discomfort. "You take this all very seriously, don't you? Serving your village, pretending they actually need you, that you actually matter. It's all rather funny really," he let a faint grin show, noticing Anko glare at him with cold, steely eyes.

And to think, she used to gaze at him with such affection. "People do need me; you're the one who's disposable here. I may have a few screws loose but people can tolerate that, the world does not need someone as evil and sick as you in it." She resolutely stated, chancing a few confident steps toward him.

Orochimaru turned his head to look up at her, to see how her fringe was matted to her forehead, how oxygen entered her lungs as her breathing rapidly sped up. "Haven't you heard? Without evil, there can be no good." He hit back, the woman was running on fumes and he was just getting started.

He raised his index and middle finger in front of his face and hissed, the effects were instantaneous as Anko's long dormant Heaven's Curse Mark activated. "AGH!" The woman cried out as a surge of pain coursed through her body, forcing her to her knees as she clutched and grasped at her neck.

Orochimaru stood without incident; he was quite good at playing possum when the need arose. "Oh, there it is. Your curse mark, you're probably wondering why I didn't trigger it sooner. To be honest, I wanted to see how my old student had grown, how you'd gotten on without me or so to speak." He casually walked his way over to her, a thin line etched into his lips and replacing the grin from earlier.

He watched her squirm as he stood over her; she was dripping with sweat as she cowered on the wooden surface of the tree-branch, her fingernails digging into her skin, as if she was attempting to rip the curse mark off manually. Orochimaru inhaled, breathing deeply before letting it go, as though he was bored. As though he could've been doing so many other things with his time, better things, more important things that warranted his attention more than his ex-pupil ever could.

"All that bravado and you can't even handle a little pain… really, Anko, I'm disappointed." Finally, he spoke or berated rather.

Anko struggled to raise her head, her pupil-less eyes wide and panicked as she gazed upon the monster looming over her. "Go to… hell," she struggled to push the words past her lips, her entire body twitching and writhing in agony.

Orochimaru nodded, he'd been expecting an aggressive response. "I don't plan on doing that any time soon, no. What I do plan on though, is you. I have plans, very big plans. Plans that count on the exams continuing without a hitch and in order for that to happen, I need you. Can you make sure of that, Anko? Can you be of use to me? Or will you fail me, just like you did last time?" He pressed, lowering himself in front of her and even going so far as to place his thumb beneath her chin.

He tilted her head up to meet his gaze, a sly smile stretched across his lips. Of course, that smile twitched as Anko answered his request by spitting in his face. A spike of anger coursed through the Yonin as he reached up to wipe the woman's saliva from his cheek, right beneath one of his eyes actually. He set his jaw; he knew he was above things such as that but Anko… she really knew how to get to him unlike anyone else.

Orochimaru responded with a swift backhand, causing Anko's cheek to turn bright red, her skin hot and stinging. Tears welled up in her eyes, she wasn't crying, it was simply a kneejerk reaction. The man left her to her pain and rose to his full height, tall and slender as he cast a frightening shadow over the grovelling woman.

His golden eyes didn't harbour any fondness for the woman, not anymore. "Temper, temper. That wasn't a very wise thing to do now, was it? Especially when you're out here with me, with no-one to aid you. Weak, vulnerable and alone." Instead they harboured disgust, an emotion weaved within his voice too as he enunciated each and every word that left his mouth.

Anko bowed her head in shame, completely paralyzed as fresh tears rolled down her slowly bruising cheek and stained the dull brown bark beneath her.

---

Twilight neared as the sky darkened, that brief lull between the bright blue of day and stark black of night, when things seemed to glow with an almost enchanting light. It was a beautiful fraction of time, when the sun went to bed for the night and the moon hadn't quite woken up yet. The phenomenon made the ominous atmosphere of the Forest of Death poignant in a way, because even though the tangled mass of trees, streams and wildlife posed a severe threat to anybody who entered, it really was quite a sight.

Unfortunately for some, they didn't have the time or the patience to stand around, marvelling at the larger than life scenery. That was the case with one Pīta Pāka, a twelve year old Leaf Genin that had just escaped with his life at the hands of three Suna ninja, albeit barely. Though, the one that had caused the most problems for the young spider had been Mikio, the supposed last living scorpion. He was stronger than Pīta, which unnerved him greatly.

It wasn't as if he was arrogant enough that he thought nobody was stronger than him, that kind of attitude was liable to get him killed. It was simply a shock to the system, after twelve years of being the strongest ninja around; it wasn't easy to take a loss in that department. Though, during their short yet brutal battle, Pīta had determined that he was still faster than Mikio.

That was his edge, along with his spider-sense and webbing. The key to defeating Mikio the second time around, if it ever came to pass, was long-ranged and distanced attacks. If he took things up close, it'd likely end the same way it had hours earlier. With Pīta lying in the dirt, on the business end of Mikio's bloodied fists.

It got his mind racing; working away in an effort to ignore the pain, keep himself occupied as his body knit itself back together. Kuentin, the self-proclaimed leader of the Sand trio, was so full of himself it was unbelievable. He had a severe God complex, that one. For some reason unknown to Pīta, he harboured some kind of grudge against those born with their gifts. Ninja with kekkei genkai, a bloodline that carried great power, through no fault of the ninja themselves.

He was arrogant, self-assured and as such, underestimated that someone like Pīta, someone born with their abilities, could be just as smart as he was. That was the key to putting him down, poking holes in his argument, his flawed logic, and his confidence. And then, land the coup de grâce. Of course, another way of besting him was simply beating him at his own game.

Kuentin was especially adept in Genjutsu, the field of illusions. If someone was good enough to match him, they'd soundly thrash him. Off the top of his head, the only ninja in their age range that could've gotten the job done was Yakumo Kurama. Pīta didn't care how talented Kuentin was; he'd never met another ninja as skilled in Genjutsu as Kurama. Well, save for Kurenai-Sensei.

And then there was the least impressive of the group, Saidai. The bald kid that wielded Lightning Style Jutsu like it was a damn toy, appropriate since he amounted to nothing more than a child waving their rattle around. Pīta felt the smug sense of self-confidence radiating off of him as soon as they'd clashed, he'd underestimated Pīta the most. A grave mistake, considering he received a pair of sandal soles to the face for his troubles.

It did present something of a problem though, the next time they faced off—if there was a next time—Saidai wouldn't make that same mistake again. Unless he was the biggest idiot on the planet, the dumbest person to have ever walked the Earth… Pīta wasn't ruling that possibility out, to be fair. But that Lightning Jutsu of his, if applied effectively, could've cooked Pīta alive.

The spider was severely underprepared for something like that; he needed an ace in the hole. Pīta stopped his laboured limping through the forest, spotting a lone, softly running stream several feet ahead of him. With his eyes clearing up somewhat since Mikio burst the blood vessels inside them, his eyesight was returning to normal. It didn't hurt like hell every single time he blinked, so there was that too.

Pīta eventually made it to the stream's edge, quietly and slowly. He had to move slowly, he almost tripped up over everything whenever he tried to pick up the pace, courtesy of his dislocated leg. The pause at the stream gave him chance to hit two birds with one stone, just the sight of fresh water flowing through its moss green surroundings made Pīta salivate.

He gently lowered himself towards the grass riddled ground, finding it comfortable enough for him to rest his knees on. After looking in every direction possible, his focused eyes scanning the trees and bushes for any sign of movement, potential threat or even just some nosey unsuspecting Genin, Pīta diligently reached up to his face and carefully pulled his dark blue mask down.

A cold air stroked Pīta's jaw, his usually guarded skin relishing in the fresh feeling. The first thing Pīta tended to as he took his red fingerless glove off was the dried, crusted blood smeared around his nose and mouth. He took great care rubbing it away, being mindful of his still broken nose. He wasn't looking forward to snapping that back into place, but it had to be done.

It was quick; he certainly didn't dawdle as he effortlessly pushed the bone back into its desired position, a position that didn't make him look like a boxer. It definitely stung but surprisingly, didn't cause him too much discomfort. A few silent minutes of cupping water in his hand and drinking it followed, the moment of reprieve was enough to enable Pīta to calm down and steady his breathing.

He carefully pulled his mask back over his jawline, resting it upon the bridge of his newly set nose. His mind shifting back to Saidai, Pīta fished around in his ruined flak jacket's compartments, not quite remembering where he'd stored the smoke grenades he'd picked up off of Kuentin. Finding them soon enough, three of them to be exact, the brunette slowly unwrapped the paper bindings around the canisters that lay inside.

Pīta unscrewed the lid off of the first canister, raising it high into the air and letting unfiltered smoke pour out of it. It flitted through the air, clean smoke, not toxic in the slightest so it wasn't going to harm any of the local wild and plant life. The boy did this two more times and when he was satisfied that the canisters were completely empty, devoid of their original gaseous inhabitant, Pīta held them in the stream and filled them to the brim with crystal clear forest water.

After safely securing his new water grenades, the boy pocketed them before struggling to his feet. "It's no wonder-magnet, but water and electricity don't mix. Best I can do with literally nothing on me," Pīta muttered to himself, something he tended to do when he was all by his lonesome.

He was about to advance, raising his arm high into the air to fire off a strand of steel silk. He would have, had a sharp pain not shot through his dislocated leg. Pīta winced as he held it; he didn't need to search thoroughly to see what exactly was wrong with his leg. The patella—the under surface of the kneecap—had been shifted out of its usual place in the patellofemoral—or the trochlea—groove.

All Pīta had to do was shift it back into place, not dissimilar to what he'd had to do with his broken nose. "This is gonna suck," the red and blue Shinobi whispered to himself, his hands firmly around his damaged leg.

The kid didn't count himself down, he didn't want to have to anticipate—or dread might've been a better choice of word—the pain. Instead, Pīta simply clenched his jaw and forced the patella back into its desired position. He didn't scream or yell or holler, he just breathed in deep through his recently set nose and breathed out through his fabric covered mouth, shaky and somewhat relieved.

He tested his fixed leg, putting a bit of weight on it. It stung, like immediately, as soon as his sandal had made contact with the soft blades of grass beneath. But he did what he always did; he powered through it and forced his leg to co-operate. It was nowhere near in perfect shape, but neither was he. He just needed to move and a busted up leg was only going to slow him down, plain and simple.

Raising his arm high once again, the heir to the famed Shukeikō-Clan fired off a web-line, a thin strand of spider-silk that was strong enough to support his weight. Pīta ascended, breezing through the forest air as it grew colder and colder, losing its humidity of the day. He swung, twisting in mid-air and launching himself hundreds of yards, navigating the chaotic mess of towering trees and tangled vines.

Another stream of translucent steal bolted from his wrist, anchoring him to the solid trunk of a redwood tree. He arced around it, gaining more and more altitude before letting go of the lifeline, letting his momentum carry him. The agile acrobat hit the sturdy branch of a tree hands first, handspringing himself forward and into yet another web-swing. It was quiet as he travelled, traversing the environment with extreme ease and precision, even despite his injuries.

Almost too quiet, though Pīta put that down to nightfall approaching, most teams probably would've called it a day at this point. Even with the immediate danger, everyone had to sleep at some point. The Forest of Death, the second phase of the Chūnin Exams, was designed to test survival instincts. And while that meant fielding attacks and ambushes from enemy ninja and wild animals, it also meant actually surviving in nature.

Sort of like a camping trip, if said camping trip involved an extreme kill or be killed game of capture the flag. Pīta passed by another tree, they were all around him after all, kicking off of it to gain a bit of a push forward. He let go of the web-line, lashing out his other hand to spin more thread. Of course, he hadn't counted on his spider-sense bombarding him with deafening warnings of danger.

Pīta's hands immediately went to cradle his throbbing head, and he quickly plummeted. Falling like dead weight, the kid had to fight through the assault on his senses in order to hit the bark of a tree, sandals first. He slipped down for a short moment before sticking completely, his powers of adhesion saving him from a rather nasty drop.

Standing there, on the side of a tree, parallel to the distant ground, Pīta wrestled with his overly sensitive senses. Something had hit him yet again, with that very same intensity as before, prior to being split up from Naruto and Sakura. A sharp stabbing pain, right at the back of his skull, begging him to turn around and run.

Run and to not look back, because whatever was throwing his spider-sense for a severe loop was just up ahead of him, maybe around a hundred or so yards. He'd almost missed it too, through the wall of white noise bearing down on him; Pīta had almost missed the danger to not just himself, but to someone else too.

The threat, whatever it was, wasn't alone. Pīta's scrambled, disjointed thoughts were confirmed when a massive crashing sound exploded from up ahead, sending a short burst of air through the forest and ruffling the leaves of trees and bushes alike. The brunette gritted his teeth; the threat was still present and seemed to have been locked in combat with someone.

Someone or something, Pīta wasn't too sure. With his spider-sense hitting him in waves, making his very muscles tremble, Pīta couldn't make out much of anything. He had to tune it all out, take control of the blasted thing and force it into submission. If not, it was going to split his skull in two like a damn watermelon.

"Stop," a mumble escaped his mouth, desperate and in the form of plea.

It might've sounded pathetic to anyone else, but nobody knew the pain he was going through. A migraine to rule all migraines, was he seeing spots? It just hurt to open his eyes, staring at the jagged and rough bark in front of him. It was driving him insane, gawking at the same thing for what felt like an eternity, unable to move or even flinch a little.

He was breathing hard, heavy. "Okay, okay… I get that you're just looking out for me. That you just want to protect me like you did my ancestors, but let's make one thing clear." Pīta muttered to himself, his voice breaking and fighting to stay steady, lest he lost control of that too.

He was speaking to his spider-sense, the phenomenon that preserved his life and kept him from danger, day in and day out. It might've been crazy; it might've been insane to appeal to something that wasn't even physical let alone inanimate. He was just trying to put himself through the motions, train his mind to take control through words and resolve.

Because there was one thing about Pīta Pāka that everyone could agree on, the lad was very good with his words. "You are not in charge here, okay? I am, I'm in charge. I'm the boss, you're on my payroll. I decide when it's okay to run, when it's okay to fight. And right now, I am not running. You're so focused on the threat that you've completely bypassed the fact that someone is in danger up ahead, someone needs my help." Pīta persisted, balling his fists and forcing his knees to stop in their incessant trembling.

Pulling rank over something that had been with him his entire life wasn't an easy task by any means; his spider-sense was practically an extension of himself. "I know, I know, buddy. I get that you're trying to guide me towards my friends, I haven't forgotten about them. I get that you're trying to drive me away from whatever the hell is triggering you so fiercely, I get it. But I cannot—will not—ignore someone in need… I won't, I won't do it." Pīta affirmed, rising to his full height as he felt the insufferable ache dull.

Things were starting to make sense again, his eyes began to lose their soreness and his ears had stopped in their ringing. "You've gotta work with me, pal. Whatever the hell you are, some kind of early warning system, some primitive form of precognition, this little relationship of ours won't work if we can't compromise. There's too much input, but someone in danger will always outweigh my own safety. Understand?" Pīta queried, as if he was actually expecting some kind of response from the sixth sense.

He took its silence as an answer, a satisfied but tired smile painted across his lips as he'd literally forced it into submission. "Yeah, you learn something new every day." Pīta mumbled into the mask covering his jaw, cracking his neck as he prepared to move.

---

Orochimaru regarded the woman in front of him, how small and pathetic she was. "Temper, temper. That wasn't a very wise thing to do now, was it? Especially when you're out here with me, with no-one to aid you. Weak, vulnerable and alone." The maniac teased, a sly smile tugging at the corner of his wide lips.

"She's not alone," a brand new voice entered the fray, distracting Orochimaru from his torture of the downed and seemingly paralyzed Anko.

It was a good thing he'd noticed it too, because the owner of the voice was already upon him in the split second it took to register. The Yonin, one of four legendary ninja, put everything he had into one powerful leap backwards, completely bypassing the devastation that immediately followed, albeit barely.

Something hit the giant, winding tree-branch he and Anko had been having it out on, right where he'd been standing. Wood and bark fractured and splintered every which way, completely splitting the towering tree's branch clean in half. Whatever it was, it'd managed to reduce solid wood to nothing more than matchsticks and sawdust. Orochimaru shielded his snake-like eyes, lest a wayward splinter found its way in.

When the commotion settled, he brought his arm down to finally look upon whatever had interrupted his one-sided discussion with his old student. Crouched, low and menacing in front of Anko, was a curious boy garbed in red and blue. It was odd to say the least; he was standing between him and the woman as though he was protecting her. As though she were off-limits to him, with narrowed brown eyes that conveyed the words 'back off'.

Orochimaru found his previously smug smile growing into one of interest, presented with something he hadn't quite planned for. It was always nice, to be surprised for once. And judging by the look on Anko's face, she seemed to have been in the same boat. There was still pain present, of course there was considering what he'd done to her, but shock was also carved into her bruised complexion.

"Pīta? Pīta Pāka? Kid, what the hell are you doing here?" Anko questioned, her chest heaving a little as he struggled to overcome her paralysis.

Pīta, the kid with the freaky spider-powers, was unusually low to the suspended branch they were on… whatever was left of it anyway. With his hands and legs splayed, he resembled something more akin to a wild animal about to pounce on its prey than he did a twelve year old greenhorn. Anko wanted to yell at him, in all honesty she wanted to tear him a new one for even thinking about butting into things.

She just didn't have the strength, not after what she'd been through. "What am I doing here? What're you doing here? Exams are for Genin only, pretty sure you don't qualify." Then again, taking a closer look at the kid in front of her, he seemed to have been put through the ringer too.

His clothes were in tatters, stained and spattered with… was that blood? His red flak jacket had been practically destroyed, hanging onto his body for dear life. Considering the fact that he was a spider, she had to wonder just what the hell had done that to him.

Orochimaru observed the child silently, how he'd not once taken his eyes off of him since arriving and how those very same eyes were inviting him, almost as if they were challenging him. He hadn't seen that for a long time, a very long time. Everyone knew who he was; his name was practically synonymous with fear and horror. It was refreshing coming across someone who, apparently, wasn't afraid of him.

It was curious actually, considering the ninja he'd gone up against. "Pāka? Well, that would explain the immense strength. Where've you been hiding this one, Anko?" The man stood in the shadows of the overbearing trees across the large gap, even in the early darkness of twilight, and finally spoke.

His voice sent shivers down Pīta's spine, it couldn't have been denied. "You… don't you touch him," Anko hit back, tears stinging her eyes as she grit her teeth and rose to a stand.

Orochimaru was almost impressed that she'd managed to fight her way through her paralysis, almost. "You're not the boss of me," he playfully replied, the corners of his mouth turning upwards as he eyed the lad across the gap.

Again, all it did was give the boy a severe case of the creeps. "Am I sensing some history here? Wait, I'm not the third wheel, am I? Because that'd be awkward and I don't wanna make things awkward," he prattled on, even in the presence of the shadow that had managed to best Anko, a Tokubetsu-Jōnin.

A bit of a grin flashed across the woman's dirtied complexion, even despite the agony she was in. "Too late, it's awkward. Now keep your mouth shut and stay close to me, that is an order." Anko forced out through gritted teeth, reaching for her neck as it throbbed and ached something fierce.

Pīta complied, backing up and rising out of his crouch. "Who's the stiff? An old boyfriend?" He found the time to mock, even as the taller woman faltered and almost fell.

She suddenly found herself weightless, glancing up to find that Pīta was supporting her effortlessly. "God, no. He's my old sensei, name's Orochimaru." She revealed, earning a snort out of her younger, vastly inexperienced companion.

"Orochimaru? For real?" Pīta found himself smirking beneath his mask as Anko leaned on his shoulder, it had to have been the dumbest name he'd ever had the pleasure of hearing.

Orochimaru didn't seem to mind either; in fact, he hadn't lost that smirk of his own. "Yes, for real. Now, be a good lad and come over here, won't you? I'd like a proper look at you," he expressed, watching as Pīta arched an eyebrow.

The pre-teen ninja cocked a thumb towards the shady individual, glancing at Anko instead of addressing him. "Next thing you know, he's gonna start promising me candy and puppies." He jested, voice full of untainted mirth.

Orochimaru witnessed Anko laugh, actually laugh despite the mark on her neck flaring up. "I've been saying that for years, kiddo." She joined in, the humour actually serving to distract her from the pain.

The missing-nin didn't like it, not one bit. "I won't ask again," Orochimaru had lost his smile, his patience beginning to wear just a little bit thin.

Pīta raised his palm; the lad picked up on the man's change in disposition. "Hold your horses, pal. Why don't we do this together? I'll take a step closer, but only if you do too. Sound fair?" He propositioned, watching as the Sound ninja contemplated the offer.

Orochimaru hummed, before finding the effort to smile once more. "A forceful child… very well, let's do things your way for now." He leniently agreed, he was used to just taking things he wanted by force.

But the boy in front of him was quite the change of pace, something he wasn't yet accustomed to. "Can you stand?" Pīta asked as he turned his attention towards Anko, the purple haired woman using him as her aid.

She scoffed, pushing away from him to find her own two feet. "Don't worry about me… really, don't, I hate it." Anko admitted, her knees shaking as they struggled to support her weight.

Pīta stood by for a few short seconds just in case, but nodded when she just about managed to stay upright. Reluctantly, he left the woman's side and made the short journey to the very edge of the destroyed tree-branch. The boy narrowed his chocolate brown orbs as Orochimaru mimicked him, stalking out from underneath the shadows and stepping into moderately better lighting.

Pīta's bloodline gifted him with many amazing and spectacular abilities; night vision wasn't one of them unfortunately. "Well, look at you! You're just creepy dialled up to eleven, aren't you?" Still, he found the time to mock his opponent in a jovially chipper voice.

Anko paled as the kid stood there, doing something that practically guaranteed a one way trip to an early grave. "Pāka," she voiced her concern with a one-word warning, she'd have stepped forward and gripped the kid's shoulder but she could barely stand herself.

Anko's terse tone fell on deaf ears as Pīta trucked on, employing the use of his super-secret weapon. "What sort of sunscreen do you use? SPF 9000?" He quipped, giving a short laugh as Orochimaru simply stared at him incredulously.

"Pāka! Knock it off with the jokes!" Anko yelled, her teeth practically grinding together as the mark on her neck continued to plague her.

Pīta didn't bother taking his eyes off of the man ahead of him; he didn't want to risk it. "You're actually scared of this schmuck?" The young Shinobi blatantly insulted, only serving to further the woman's disbelief on the matter.

Orochimaru on the other hand, tilted his head in an inquisitive manner. "Excuse me?" His low rasp of a voice pushed past his wide, serpent-like mouth.

Pīta let himself chuckle, just a short laugh on his part to set himself at ease. "Schmuck… you know, patsy? Loser? Jerkoff? You must be familiar with that last one," he once again ribbed, using his prickling sense of humour to mask his anticipation.

Because Pīta knew how things were going to happen, he knew the very second he decided to get involved. In the same way he'd known when the trio of Sand ninja had ambushed him, the kid knew that things would end in a good ole' fashioned, drag-out brawl. At this point, he was simply stalling and buying some time to learn a little bit more about the guy he was about to fight.

It helped knowing the enemy, even just knowing their name helped out in the long run. "You're mocking me," Orochimaru was no idiot, recognizing the boy's bluntness as he closed his golden eyes for a solid second.

Pīta nodded, owning up to his brash behaviour without missing a beat. "Gee, what gave me away?" He posed rhetorically, strolling off to the side of the expansive tree-branch.

Orochimaru mimicked him, following his every casual movement as they sized one another up. "You really are a curious little specimen, aren't you?" The Sound Shinobi, a man who previously belonged to the organization known as the Akatsuki, observed.

He was smiling, apparently shrugging off the lad's insults as though they hadn't even fazed him. "Specimen? That there's some fancy lingo for a regular run-of-the-mill ninja, even the legendary variety. Let me guess, you're a scientist." Pīta made an educated guess, something he was particularly good at.

Orochimaru paused for a second, as if contemplating the next thing that slipped out of his mouth. "Sharp boy… I am known for my experimental nature, yes." He revealed, which was something he wouldn't have done under any other circumstance.

But the child before him, asking so many questions and making so many assumptions, clearly had some sort of a thirst for knowledge. And on some level, Orochimaru appreciated that. People with potential asked questioned, they were the people that ascended above their peers and actually made some kind of a difference, good or bad.

Sheep were the people that were content with their miserably dull lives; ignorance was supposedly bliss after all. "That's one hell of an understatement," Anko chimed in, a bitter tone lacing her voice as her light brown eyes burned into her former sensei.

Orochimaru had a quiet laugh to himself, he considered Anko as a person that belonged in the latter category. "I'll bet… so, we doing this or what?" Pīta's voice once again stole his attention away from Anko, and the snake-like man was all too keen to give it to him.

His angular eyes, narrow and predatory in their shape, studied the boy intently. "Intelligent, to the point… I'm really starting to like you." Orochimaru… complimented?

Pīta frowned beneath that mask of his; he wasn't looking forward to trading blows with the guy. "What?! Are you out of your mind?!" Anko suddenly forgot the fact that she was in a world of pain, just long enough to yell out her bewilderment at the top of her lungs.

Pīta glanced back at her, one eye wincing slightly at the sheer volume of the woman. "You sound surprised," he snarked, able to see the funny side of such a situation.

Anko, apparently, wasn't as amused. "He's one of the four legendary Yonin, an S-Rank ninja of the highest calibre. He'll kill you, Pīta. There're no ifs, ands or butts about it." She expressed, attempting to step forward and slap the stupid out of him.

Of course, she was halted in her tracks as Orochimaru opened his mouth. "Let's test that theory, shall we?" The Shinobi, with his long, dark hair, spoke as his eyes flared up.

Something unseen hit both Jōnin and Genin, the two of them seizing up as the demon-like figure stared into their very souls. They couldn't move, not one muscle as Orochimaru smirked. He was in control of the situation once again, as things should've been. Both Anko and Pīta attempted to move, attempted to force every inch of their shaking bodies to obey their panicked commands and just move.

Anko's thoughts were racing while Pīta's spider-sense went haywire, bombarding his skull with increasingly violent warnings that something bad was about to happen. "You see it, don't you? The inevitability of your demise, of every demise really. Human beings really are frail little things; such is the fragility of life." He addressed both of them for a moment, speaking fondly like he was teaching some kind of class.

Anko's pale brown eyes darted over to the boy on her left, sweat drenching her purple fringe and dripping down her forehead. He was trying to move, his fists were balled as tight as they could've been. Every inch of him was twitching and shaking, almost as if he was fighting against gravity itself, like it'd been dramatically increased to the point that everything felt like it was made of lead.

She wanted to tell Pīta what was happening, because she knew full well what was happening. His killing intent, she wanted to explain, almost reassure him that there was nothing he could've done to fight it. Older and more experienced ninja had fallen prey to it, the sheer palpable thirst for death that Orochimaru conveyed in a single, striking glance.

Anko wasn't entirely sure, it had supposedly happened a good several years ago but… she was sure she'd heard that Kakashi himself had seized up in the man's presence, back when he was still young and with ANBU. When she'd heard it, she'd laughed, had a good full blown fit of giggles about it. Because just the notion of someone as calm and composed as the copy-nin, freezing in terror like a startled deer, it was a little much.

Though, Anko had never experienced it herself before. It granted her an entirely new viewpoint of things, an entirely new angle. She wasn't afraid of Orochimaru, she wasn't. She'd spent a good part of her childhood with the man; once upon a time she'd even trusted him. But at no point had she ever been scared of him, not once.

Apparently, some things changed. "And then there's your kind, the famous spiders and all they can do, will wonder's never cease. While it's true that you're much harder to kill than most, you're still far too human for your own good." At this point, Orochimaru had turned his full attention to the kid once again.

Though, he didn't seem as impressed as he had been. "It's a shame really; I was hoping you'd prove to be far more impressive. It seems most of the strength of your bloodline has dwindled over the years, what a terrible waste." The pale skinned ninja was disappointed; perhaps disheartened that the boy had succumbed to something that everyone else did too.

Pīta watched helplessly as images of his own untimely death cluttered his mind, the simplicity of it rendering him speechless. Not that he had the ability to open his mouth anyway, but watching himself take a kunai to the head and drop like deadweight did a real number on him. His breath hitched in his throat, the notion and mechanics of oxygen intake suddenly becoming a lot more complex and unfathomable to him.

Orochimaru brandished a kunai blade, spotless steal comfortably gripped in his hand. "If it's any consolation, you really were quite entertaining." He felt the need to compliment; as though he were letting the boy down easy that he just didn't make the cut.

The man didn't grandstand or give a rousing speech, he didn't play with the weapon and further the boy's anxiety with agonizing anticipation, Orochimaru simply aimed and then let it fly. It was dreadfully accurate, sailing through the forest air at a frightening speed, headed straight for the space right between the lad's big brown doe eyes.

Time seemed to stand still as Pīta's body refused to budge, his spider-sense roaring and constantly reminding him that he was about to bite it. It was infuriating really, constantly nagging him to move. Like he didn't know to dodge something that was going to kill him, he hadn't been born yesterday. He was no idiot, he knew he couldn't die. He couldn't afford to die, not just yet anyway. Even at such an early point in his life, he had a lot of people depending on him.

Pīta couldn't have left Anko on her own to fend for herself, he still needed to follow his spider-tracer and find his missing friends. And last but not least, in all honesty, Pīta really wouldn't have minded being promoted and making Chūnin. It wasn't vital, it wasn't necessary at all but it would've been the icing on the cake, the proverbial cherry on top.

Of course, if any of that were to come to pass, he needed to get his act together and move. Realistically, he had to break things down. Was he really afraid of Orochimaru? No, he really wasn't. Was he terrified of dying? That thought had been repeating throughout his head the entire day, most prominently when Mikio was wailing on him.

Pīta wasn't afraid of dying, he was afraid of what happened after. What would've happened to Anko? Would Orochimaru have killed her? What about his teammates? They couldn't have finished the exams without him, they'd have been disqualified. What about his aunt? Mei had already lost her husband, what would've happened if she'd received the news that her twelve year old nephew had been killed?

Pīta couldn't let it happen, he just couldn't. It didn't happen immediately, it happened in stages. The lad's muscles began to loosen up as his breathing evened out; his spider-sense became less of an assault and more of an aid. Pīta didn't overcome the fear; there was no fear present to begin with. Without a word, he bolted forward and leapt clear across the gap, sailing right over the kunai that seemed to have been suspended in mid-air.

Orochimaru was so caught off-guard that someone, a mere twelve year old no less, had powered though his killing intent that he was speechless. Pushing through by way of pain was one way, as the Uchiha boy had done earlier that day, but powering through by sheer force of will was something else entirely. He watched, completely enamoured as Pīta flipped, tagging the still in motion kunai with a web-line, before swinging it his way in a downwards arc.

At the very last second, the Yonin made a desperately last ditch move. The descending spider witnessed the whip-like kunai on a web-line slice straight through Orochimaru, right down the middle. He split in two, splashing to the moss covered bark of the tree. Pīta landed in a three point crouch, a hand and both of his sandals making contact with the deep brown substance.

The spider examined his fingers for a moment, before gazing around with narrowed eyes. "A mud clone? Dude, come on." He complained, rising to stand as he turned around to check up on Anko.

The Tokubetsu-Jōnin seemed much less stiff than before, apparently Orochimaru's disappearance had somehow broken the effectiveness of his killing intent. "Yeah, he does that sometimes." Anko answered, though really was trying to push past the paralysis of her body.

Oh, and the fact that a twelve year old kid had overpowered her old sensei's killing intent, she couldn't forget that. "That was no easy feat, boy. I'm eager to know, just how did you break free?" It seemed the man himself was taken with the accomplishment, his voice a disembodied echo as it bounced from tree to tree.

Neither Anko nor the highly sensitive Pīta could place the source, so instead had to wait it out. "Wasn't so tough, I've spent the better half of the day fighting for my life. And I haven't come this far to choke out against some chalky vampire looking dude… no offence," the spider felt inclined to answer, bobbing his head as he insulted the man yet again.

Orochimaru returned the favour, throwing a reply the child's way. "None taken," it was closer, louder and judging by the intense warning of his spider-sense… directly above Pīta.

The serpent-like Shinobi dropped from the guarded foliage of a taller tree, like a bat out of hell, right behind Pīta. Before Anko could warn the lad, Pīta had already ducked beneath a right haymaker, spinning on his heel to deliver a roundhouse kick. His sandal breezed by Orochimaru's pale chin, and the man was already advancing. He systematically attacked the boy, showcasing inhuman speed and reflexes as they traded blows.

Anko was watching the entire thing play out, unsure whether the best thing was to get involved or not. The whole proctor part of her—the part of her that was supposed to look out for the kids to at least some degree—wanted to step in, but another part of her was actually impressed. Because even though Pīta hadn't tagged Orochimaru just yet, the S-Rank ninja hadn't yet landed one successful hit on the Genin either.

"You're even uglier up close," Pīta snarked, snapping his head to the right of a set of pale knuckles.

Orochimaru had to guard against a particularly reverberating elbow, employing the use of his forearm to protect his head as he replied. "It's the last face you'll ever see," he threatened, not quite sure if it was an empty one himself.

He was testing the boy, so anything could've happened at that point. Having absolutely no luck in close quarter combat, Orochimaru leapt backwards and whipped out two shuriken, one in each hand. He let them fly, slicing them through the air and watched with increasing intrigue as Pīta seamlessly fit into the space between them.

They hit nothing but air, searing off and out of sight. But the brief moment granted Orochimaru what he wanted, an opportune distraction. Pīta was caught off-guard when something sticky and almost rubbery tagged his arm, raising his head in confusion to discover that it was his foe's snake-like tongue.

"Okay, that's new." Pīta mumbled as he planted his feet on the bark of the expansive tree-branch, pulling the tongue taut.

Orochimaru yanked his head back as hard as he could and while Pīta felt some seriously impressive resistance, he employed the use of his uncanny adhesive abilities and a little bit of spider-strength, allowing him to remain perfectly still. The Sound ninja's golden eyes widened, he hadn't moved the child one bit.

Pīta smirked; he was doing fairly well all things considered. "You know I stick to things, right? Get over here!" The boy mocked, gripping the slippery texture of the tongue and pulling with all his might.

The result was instantaneous, flinging the man like a ragdoll, headed straight for him. Pīta put everything he had into one hell of a prime uppercut, landing it perfectly. Orochimaru soared off, his tongue twisting and flailing behind him as he flew.

"And it's good!" Pīta called out, raising his hands as though he were cheering.

A little childish, sure but he felt he'd earned it. "Do not let your guard down, Pāka. He's testing you, toying with you. He wants to—ugh!" Anko attempted to warn the boy, though every single movement she made was slow, sluggish and put her into a world of hurt.

That damn Heaven's Curse Mark, ever since Orochimaru had reactivated it after it had laid dormant for so long, it just wouldn't let up. "What's with you? Has he done something to you?" Pīta had already cleared the distance between the two of them, a clear look of concern glossing over those big brown eyes of his.

Anko felt his adolescent hands already propping her up like she weighed nothing; it sort of agitated her actually. "I can walk, dummy." She softly insulted, gently pushing away from him.

Pīta arched an eyebrow; he really didn't understand the behaviour of some adults. "You're a real piece of work, you know that?" He folded his arms as she did her best to remain upright, resisting the urge to just hoist her off the wooden surface they were stood on.

Anko threw a cheeky smile his way, though he was able to recognize the sheer fatigue in it too. "Sorry, mom… geez." The woman, a grown woman at that, rolled her light brown eyes as the kid shook his head.

The fleeting moment of respite didn't last long, as a faint rumbling alerted the pair. They span around, Pīta admittedly much faster than the laboured Anko, and prepared for whatever was growing in volume and proximity. Anko knew the technique, and the spider recalled it from earlier that day.

They were both struck by an immense torrent of unforgiving wind, completely knocking Anko off of her feet and carrying her into the air. Pīta would've stayed put, having planted his sandals firmly on the jagged bark of the tree-branch. But the wind, being the relentless element that it was, completely shattered the remaining tree-branch, splintering centuries old wood every which way and catapulting Pīta from his perch.

The boy let the wind carry him just as he had done earlier in the day; he needed to get closer to his proctor anyway. The expert tracker attempted to right herself in mid-air, but every time her curse mark flared up, her body rolled into a ridiculous amount of spasms. The woman felt herself being plucked right out of the air, feeling almost weightless as she descended right down to the absolute base of the Forest of Death, the dirt and grass covered ground.

The wind eventually died down, calming enough that she was actually able to hear sound again. "Nice catch," Anko congratulated the lad that was carrying her, holding her bridal style embarrassingly.

Pīta shrugged, he'd performed infinitely more difficult tasks than catching a woman whilst airborne. "Thanks," he shortly replied, before his elder unceremoniously forced her way out of his grip.

"Now get off," Anko hit the floor knees first, the moist dirt of the forest cushioning her rather short tumble as it decorated her fair skinned legs.

Pīta took a step back, watching the Tokubetsu-Jōnin wince and mutter a curse beneath her breath. "What the hell is your problem?" He asked, a little more forcefully than he was used to.

Anko heard it, it was probably the first time she'd heard him raise that cocksure voice of his. "I don't like being coddled," she answered, resulting in a roll of the eyes from her younger company.

The red and blue clad Shinobi threw his hands up in compliance; clearly she wasn't used to the concept of teamwork. "Fine, then how about you get up off your butt and help me take this whack job. Better?" He raised his voice, or did his best to assert a more aggressive tone.

Anko just barely managed to climb to her feet, without the kid's insistent outside help. "Better," she offered a cheeky grin his way, before unceremoniously cracking her back.

Pīta quirked an eyebrow, watching her cycle through a series of hand signs. "Now, throw down some webbing and let me show you how it's done, squirt." She commanded, she was still the adult after all, watching as the spider cluelessly stretched out his arms in front of him.

Orochimaru exploded out of the maze-like structure of trees and thickets, knocking the boy's sixth sense for a loop. "Aim all around him! Now!" Anko bellowed, causing Pīta to spray and prey like there was no tomorrow.

Several strands of silk steel whizzed by the looming Yonin, missing his head and torso and tagging the wall of greenery behind him. "Fire Style: Dragon Flame Jutsu!" Anko called out upon completing her hand signs, being mindful enough to yank Pīta away from his webbing by the scruff of his neck.

The duo watched as a spark of orange and yellow ember ignited the lines, before running along and burning through them like wildfire. It took seconds, less than that, for the elemental attack to reach the man. The streams of fire met in glorious fashion, colliding and mingling around Orochimaru to set him alight. The display lit up the surrounding darkness of the overhead forest, the heat and light so intense that Pīta had to throw an arm up in front of his face.

Anko on the other hand, did not. "Something smells good," she jested, gently elbowing her shorter companion in the ribs, as though he were somehow in on the joke.

"You've got issues, lady." Pīta mumbled back, slightly unnerved as the fire danced in the woman's pale brown eyes.

Several solid minutes passed by and the ferocious flames finally died down, throwing the forest back into the dark and cold of twilight. It was silent, as Anko and Pīta tried to visually sift through the charred remains of what had been left. It was difficult, no doubt even more so due to the growing blackness of the sky. Anko laughed, earning a severely questionable look from Pīta.

The woman actually laughed, like a howl and everything. Pīta didn't say anything, he didn't need to. His muscles were too tense, too wound up and ready to spring for him to cool off and take a breather. He'd been expecting more, having Anko spout warnings to him of some legendary Shinobi. It'd dug a preconceived notion of the fight into his head, how things should've gone and how they'd actually gone.

The pre-teen didn't want to admit that he was disappointed, far from it in fact. It was just that… well, yeah, he was kinda disappointed. Though, Pīta hadn't heard the phrase 'be careful what you wish for', or if he had he'd certainly forgotten it. Because as his spider-sense began to chime, he seriously regretted those stray thoughts floating around his muddled mind.

The smouldering wreck of dead trees and plant life rumbled and shook, putting an immediate end to Anko's hysterical howling. "Ah, crap." The woman muttered, pale brown eyes widening as a smoking Orochimaru burst out of the fiery remains.

He was headed right for her, the lower half of his body resembling the long, winding form of a snake as he slithered toward her with inhuman speed. Pīta pushed her out of the way, the both of them tumbling clear as the Yonin made a pass at them. The duo rolled, landing in a crouch and watching as Orochimaru circled back around, hissing something fierce.

"He seems upset," Pīta noted, his spider-sense lighting the synapses of his brain on fire.

The Sound ninja flew at the pair of them, a white knuckle fist reeled back and ready to inflict a serious world of hurt upon the two annoyances. That had been the plan, though neither he nor Anko had expected the lad dressed in red and blue to catch his punch. Orochimaru, every ounce of his force and momentum, had been completely halted in his tracks. The shock was apparent in both sets of eyes, glistening golden and light brown. Pīta's own orbs were narrowed, his arm shaking as he fought against rather impressive resistance.

He had to wordlessly admit, the snake looking dude was no pushover. "You're strong; pal… but I've already met someone stronger." The spider spoke through gritted teeth, pushing back against Orochimaru's fist.

Anko was speechless, literally speechless as the kid—a twelve year old punk of a Genin—overpowered one of the legendary four Yonin in a contest of strength. While she severely doubted he'd have the same luck against Lady Tsunade or the missing in action Madame Juria, it was still impressive nonetheless.

Pīta wound his free fist back, ready to knock the guy clear into next week. "Summoning Jutsu: Rashōmon!" Had Orochimaru not thought on his feet, cycling through a few rapid hand signs and doing it one-handed too.

The boy's spider-sense roared and he let go of his enemy's fist, jerking his entire arm back and stepping backwards as something huge sprung forth from the Earth beneath them. Both Pīta and Anko wordlessly witnessed some kind of massive metal construct rise out of the ground, creating a solid barrier between them and Orochimaru. The construct was an ugly sight; the angry, rage-filled face of a demon was painted onto the front of it. It was a dull grey in colour, framed by a red spiked and jagged material.

When the rumbling finally stopped and the dirt it had kicked up finally settled, the thing resembling a giant gate dwarfed them in size. It was tall, taller than any building either one of them had ever seen. Though its impossible height stopped short of outmatching the surrounding trees, it still cast a looming shadow over the ants around it.

Pīta didn't know what to say, he'd never seen such a thing in all his short years. "That's a new trick," Anko muttered, it seemed she hadn't either.

Orochimaru heard the musing on the other side of the barrier, an otherworldly gate made up of metal no known force could break. "Oh, it's much more than a trick, my dear. The Rashōmon is an ultimate defence, capable of withstanding even the—" The mad scientist began to ramble, attempting to explain the functionality of such a technique.

"Don't hold back," though, the man hadn't expected Anko to interrupt him, even though she was the rudest individual he'd ever met.

Pīta threw the woman, his senior and higher ranking ninja, a look of adolescent confusion. "What?" A one-worded question came out of his masked covered mouth, perfectly displaying how lost he was on the matter.

The boy was taken by surprise when Anko grabbed one of his wrists and raised it in front of him, shaking it like a ragdoll. "Your freaky spider-strength! I've been watching you since you stumbled into this mess, every move you've made. You've been holding back, afraid that you'll hurt someone. Let me be the first to tell you, kid. This isn't some game, okay? That man over there, with his stupid bleached skin, will kill you the first chance he gets, he's a legendary Shinobi and you are nothing to him! I'm nothing to him! So do us both a favour and stop holding back, let loose and hit the damn thing before I hit you!" Anko practically yelled, living up to her reputation as not exactly the most pleasant woman in the Leaf Village.

Pīta yanked his hand back, his chocolate brown eyes never leaving her own. "Just give me a reason, lady." He murmured, stepping away from her to size up the demonic gate in front of him.

The lad didn't know how the woman knew, how she'd managed to see past his limitations, but she had. It was true, Pīta had been supressing his strength. He just couldn't help it, it was second nature. Ever since he was a child, he'd learnt of his dangerous physical prowess and had been extremely conscious in the choice to dampen it. It had gotten to the point that he didn't even know he was doing it, around a decade of practising did that.

He didn't want to have to be afraid every time he hugged his aunt, he didn't want to accidentally kill one of his friends or teammates by patting them on the back too hard. Even with more experienced individuals, people that probably could've killed him at the drop of a hat, it was just a reflex. When he, Naruto and Sakura had to retrieve a set of bells from Kakashi-Sensei, he'd been holding back then too.

It was one of the things Pīta had the hardest time with, not because of how difficult it was keeping a lid on every move he made. More so because of the fear born out of it, the paranoia that went hand-in-hand with such thoughts. Pīta had convinced himself for years that it was him doing the right thing, it was him being responsible.

And maybe that was true, but there was always some part of himself that doubted it. Pīta shook his head as he forgot about those countless fears and doubts that plagued him, swallowing and doing what he always did. Pīta buried it, deep within himself and took a deep breath. It was something he did every day in order to focus, in order to never let himself go for even the briefest of moments and end up ripping a door off of its hinges or harming an innocent animal because he pet it too hard.

Pīta balled his fist and reared back, he had no idea what the scary looking gate was made out of but he had to at least try and test it. For once in his life, Pīta put everything he had into one, monumental superhuman blow. He didn't hold back, not one bit as his knuckles collided with the dull metal of the gate.

The result wasn't instantaneous; the gate didn't explode open beneath the sheer force of Pīta's fist. But the Rashōmon still failed where it shouldn't have, the otherworldly materials it was made up of slowly bending and giving. The indentation of Pīta's small, very adolescent fist gradually grew in size as he drilled into it. With gritted teeth hidden behind that dark blue mask of his; he had to admit that the gate was the most resilient thing he'd ever encountered.

Orochimaru was once again speechless for one of the first times in his life, watching as something bulged and warped the metal of the gate. The sheer force the lad must have been exerting was indecipherable, stunning the Yonin on the spot. Anko herself had been caught off-guard, whilst it had been her idea in the first place to just mash into it, she honestly hadn't expected Pāka to be capable of such a thing.

Pīta pulled back, the knuckles hidden beneath his fingerless red gloves aching. "Couple more hits like that and it's go time, Rochi. You mind if I call you Rochi? You know, like a cockroach?" The Genin mocked, about to lay into the gargantuan object standing between him and the Yonin.

Though, the gate wasn't an issue any longer as it suddenly descended back from whence it came, grinding into the soft Earth beneath it until it disappeared entirely. Pīta and Anko readied themselves as Orochimaru once again came into view, standing rather loosely and with no clear intentions. Anko was a little confused on the matter; he'd apparently dispelled the technique.

"Your strength… I've only ever met two others like you, both of them relics of an irrelevant past. Too powerful for your own good, just like they were." Orochimaru spoke, hissing through that subtle and understated grin of his.

It gave Anko a serious case of the creeps; she involuntarily twitched as shivers ran down her spine. "You want something, don't you? I used to be your student, it's the only reason you'd ever cease fighting and start talking. Whatever it is, whatever you want, spit it out." The woman pushed past her fears and insecurities, the curse mark on her neck having calmed down for the moment.

A light laugh emerged from the pale man's stretched reptile-like mouth, carving even deeper frowns onto both Pīta and Anko's lips. "You know me so well, Anko. You on the other hand… you're something new, something intriguing. You've performed far beyond my expectations, which is something I rarely find myself saying. Even for a spider, you're a rare breed. And you know that, don't you?" Orochimaru took his piercing eyes away from the woman in the trench coat, devoting his full attention on the boy in the ravaged flak jacket beside her.

Pīta side-eyed his elder, as if checking with her whether or not he was allowed to answer. "I know that these hands can do a lot of damage, hard to keep 'em in check sometimes." Despite the shake of the head from Anko, Pīta chose to participate.

The grin widened on their enemy's face, pleased he was being indulged. "But you do anyway, because you might slip up and kill someone. You might kill your little friends back in the village; you might end up killing a teacher. You might even snap Anko's neck if you handle her a little too roughly, she can barely stand as it is." He was digging, having overhead Anko's words earlier.

Pīta wasn't sure whether to answer, the man's evaluation had hit a little too close to home. "The thought had crossed my mind, yeah." He muttered, owning up to the doubts that riddled his logical and forward thinking mind.

Anko narrowed her eyes, glaring daggers at the Shinobi in front of her. "What're you doing?" She pressed, the cogs turning in her own mind.

Orochimaru acknowledged her, but not by gracing her with his gaze. "Making an offer, once in a lifetime. How would you like to never experience that fear again? The fear that you might harm those closest to you, whether it's an innocent accident or you lose your temper and things start to… break." He queried, trailing off as he continued to smile, his canines on full display.

Pīta didn't answer, not immediately anyway. It was clear to Anko that her former sensei's words had struck the kid; the man had an unnatural knack for getting inside of people's heads. She didn't think much of kids, they were loud, bratty and always thought that they knew what was best. Those were some of the major contributing factors in the woman's decision to not have a child, at least not any time soon. But Pīta, just as Orochimaru had expressed moments earlier, he was a different breed altogether.

He was sharp, clearly there was some sort of above average intelligence at work there. It was curious too, because he hid it behind a walled-off exterior of jokes and punchlines, rattling them off like there was no tomorrow. He was powerful; she would've had to have been a fool not to take notice of it. But she'd also caught that he was… not afraid of his abilities, but of what his abilities could've done.

The way he kept a lid on them meant one thing, that he was responsible. Which in all honesty was a miracle for a child so young, kids were extraordinarily impressionable after all. And that impressionability was becoming a growing concern, as the boy seemed to have been receptive to what Orochimaru was saying. Anko knew the man, knew him quite intimately. And she did not want Pīta to repeat that same mistake, to offer trust to someone that did not deserve it.

"Please tell me you're not listening to this, Pāka." She attempted to appeal to him, going right for his common sense.

He was just standing there, one of the sorriest looking sights she'd ever laid eyes on. With his clothes practically hanging onto his body for dear life, dried blood and blackened stains smeared across every inch of him, and a lost, empty look in those big doe eyes of his. She had absolutely no clue what had happened to him prior, but he'd clearly gone ten rounds with someone dangerous. They'd had to have been dangerous; he was a spider after all.

Pīta hadn't answered, so Anko tried again. "Pāka!" She yelled, just shy of gripping his arm and shaking some life into him.

Orochimaru cut in, smiling as things had suddenly swung in his favour. "You had your chance, Anko, let the boy have his." He urged her to give up, to let things play out.

Something stirred in Pīta's eyes and he once again opened that big mouth of his, as though he'd been replaying his enemy's words in his head over and over again. "There's a catch, there's always a catch." He noted, ignoring the haggard looking woman next to him.

Orochimaru shook his head, employing his immaculate poker face. "Just the promise of potential, no restrictions, no rules or limitations. No reason to have to keep holding yourself back, nothing to be afraid of. All you have to do is swear allegiance to me," lies poured out of his mouth, living up to his snake-like nature.

Pīta scoffed, quite sceptically too. "Oh, is that all?" He wasn't an idiot, he knew enough to know when someone was obviously spouting lies.

It was to be expected, it wasn't like Orochimaru was known for his honest nature. "There might be a few more things that aren't worth noting, think of them as the small print in a binding contract." The man made the comparison flippantly, waving a hand casually.

The youngest of the bunch, the brunette with the attitude problem, nodded. "Nobody ever reads that," he commented, absent minded in its delivery.

"Precisely," Orochimaru agreed, slowly but surely feeling as though he was getting somewhere with the lad.

Ever so slowly, forcing both Orochimaru and Pīta to take notice of her, Anko stepped in front of the latter. "You're not taking him anywhere, I won't let you." She asserted, her arms spread wide and a deep frown carved onto her lips.

The pale skinned man set his jaw as the woman, a girl he once knew all grown up, stood between him and his newfound interest. "Anko, I'd really hate to have to kill you to get to him. So, consider this a warning." His eyes flared, almost hypnotic as they triggered something in the Leaf Kunoichi.

Anko dropped to the dirt ground beneath her, grovelling on her knees as the curse mark on her neck burned into her very skin. Pīta flinched, involuntarily reaching for her, as if to help in some way. He held off, watching her grit her teeth and push through what must have been excruciating pain. Upon closer inspection, Anko was clutching at something just as she had been earlier.

His soft chocolate eyes slowly flickered from his ally to his enemy, he came to the conclusion that Orochimaru had some level of control over Anko through the use of… what, he wasn't sure. "Have you come to a decision, boy?" The Yonin pressed, he didn't have all day after all.

Pīta opened his mouth to answer, hidden beneath that dark blue mask of his. "He's lying, kid." But he was beaten to the punch by Anko, tears stinging her pale brown eyes as sweat rolled off of her forehead.

It was astonishing to both parties, how she was still even able to function, to stay competent, enduring such physical abuse. "That's all he knows how to do… it's in his nature, he's a damn traitor. You're not though and you never will be, right? Think of your village, Pāka. Think of your friends, your aunt, and your team. Think of all of them and then answer, consider everything you've ever known and tell this blowhard what you think of his offer." Anko grinned, her arm visibly shaking as it struggled to support her weight, pressed against the soft soil of the Earth.

Pīta's eyes, fraught with concern for a crazy lady he barely knew, were once again drawn to Orochimaru. "Make. A. Choice." He voiced his frustration, Anko's constant chattering filling the boy's head with sentimental nonsense.

But it hadn't been Anko's words that had made Pīta's mind up, he hadn't even been really listening to the man before him. Just as he had earlier, when fighting to preserve his team's scroll stored safe inside his wrecked flak jacket. The young spider, supposed last of his kind, was not going to roll over and show his belly at the first sign of trouble. He wasn't going to be groomed by some sinister looking dude with a superiority complex, a guy that was so very clearly the spokesperson for freaks everywhere.

Pīta subconsciously loosened up, instinctually preparing for what was about to happen. "Get bent," he spat, eliciting a frown out of the brilliant Shinobi standing in front of him.

Orochimaru set his jaw, just trying to process such a blatant disregard for him and his words. "As choices go, that was quite a poor one." He pointed out, piercing the boy with his predatory eyes.

A sense of urgency welled up within Pīta, watching as the dangerous missing-nin opened his mouth. "Ten Thousand Snakes Wa—" The child didn't let him finish, sealing his gaping maw with a quick-fire bolt of spider-silk.

As the dark haired Sound ninja struggled to tear the organic substance off of his face, Anko let a laugh escape her lungs. "Knew you wouldn't let me down," even though it hurt like hell with each heave of her chest, it was worth it at the expense of her ex-teacher.

Pīta was immediately by her side, his arms propping her up and keeping her steady. "My webbing's tensile strength is stronger than steel, there's no way he's getting that off any time soon." He explained, looping her arm over his shoulders and letting her lean on him.

Which Anko ashamedly had to do, her knees were just about to buckle. She wouldn't have admitted it, but she just wasn't as tough as the minor in her stead. She didn't have superhuman spider-blood coursing through her veins; she was just as human as anybody else and had already exerted herself beyond what was possible.

Pīta was going to put as much ground between them as he could; there was no need to fight any longer. His main concern was the senior ninja in his care; Anko looked to have been fading in and out of consciousness as he limped away from the scene with her. Of course, nothing was ever easy in the life of a Shinobi. More accurately, nothing was ever easy in the life of Pīta Pāka.

His spider-sense urged him to turn around, to set his eyes on the growing threat behind him. Anko had to as well, just barely managing to raise her head and just in time too. The duo watched in sheer bewilderment and disgust as Orochimaru forced a massive, glowing blade up through his throat and right out of his mouth. The mysterious weapon sliced clean through each sporadic strand of translucent webbing, before it was fully spat out into the waiting hands of its wielder.

"Unless he… regurgitates a sword, thanks for the heads up." Pīta dumbly spoke, his chocolate brown eyes as wide as saucers.

Anko wasn't fairing any better, the stunned look on her complexion masking her inner pain. "I'm just as freaked as you are, kiddo." The purple haired bombshell shared the boy's demeanour; she hadn't seen her old sensei for quite some time after all.

It seemed in the span of those years since his desertion of the Hidden Leaf Village, Orochimaru had learnt several new—and incredibly disturbing—tricks.

---

Some distance away, hidden underneath the increasingly colder air and darker sky of twilight, a lonely female Genin was hard at work on a few tricks of her own. The girl had no idea how she'd managed it, but Sakura Haruno had somehow moved Naruto, Sasuke, Sai and Yakumo to a safe place. Hidden beneath the claw-like roots of a fine old tree, the four ninja slept soundly, unaware of the world around them and the dangers it contained.

Unaware of what Sakura had had to do in order to keep them safe, make sure no-one found them. It had taken her hours, long, tiring hours of toiling away in increasingly reduced visibility. Her emerald eyes seemed to glow in the dimness of early evening as sweat drenched her forehead, her back, running down and staining her red dress with dark damp patches.

She was covered in dirt; the Earthy substance caked her bare legs, her elbows, her cheeks, her arms. She exhaustingly sawed away at the tangled roots of a large bush with her kunai knife, sighing when she cut clean through it. The pink haired lass had been doing the same thing for around an hour, taking bushes and greenery from the surrounding area to stack it up against the small alcove she'd found for her friends and teammate.

Every now and then, she took a break and sat down in the dirt, back pressed against the solid bark of the tree as she rested for a while. Whenever she needed to quench a consistently growing thirst, a nearby flowing stream of fresh water sated her quite nicely. It was crystal clear, cool as ice and made Sakura smile fondly just thinking about the relief and pleasure it brought.

She'd obscured her friends so they could sleep safely, without incident. She'd set up a few traps with what she'd had on her, which wasn't much to begin with. A few lines of rope, a handful of shuriken and two kunai knives. Her primary blade strapped to her thigh, and a spare she always carried around just in case. It was standard issue to be prepared, though Sakura wasn't sure if anyone else kept a spare handy.

She did this for quite some time, divided her time up between resting, throwing together makeshift defences and checking on her friends' well-being. Sai, Yakumo and Naruto slept without incident. Naruto seemed physically exhausted, whereas Sai and Yakumo appeared stiff as a board. Apparently, whatever that man—Orochimaru—had done to them, it had somehow paralyzed them. Though, the only one of the group of four that Sakura had to routinely check up on was Sasuke.

He tossed and turned every now and then, nestled beneath the shadow of the tree. He was in pain, that much was clear to the girl. She kept a few rags of clothing handy that she'd fashioned into cold compresses, applying them to his forehead in an effort to keep him cool and stave off some kind of a fever. One thing in particular that drew the Kunoichi's curious eyes each time was the mark on his neck, the very same one that horrible man had applied.

It consisted of three tomoe, teardrop shaped in nature and stark black in colour. Sakura didn't know what it was, why Orochimaru had given it to Sasuke or what it meant. But it looked evil, just the vibe it gave off every time she laid eyes on it had her shiver involuntarily. Nobody was going to convince her that it was a good thing, not with the way it'd been forced onto the lad, not with the way it almost appeared a part of him.

Sakura crawled back into the alcove she'd found for her fellow Leaf ninja, stopping to sit on her knees with her hands in her lap as the drab sky continued to darken and push on towards night. She didn't have a watch, had no idea what the exact time of day it was, but said day was drawing to a tiring and aching close. The last time she'd seen the third missing member of her team, it had been early morning at least.

The girl shut her eyes and frowned at the sheer thought of Pīta, what had happened before he'd vanished into thin air. Some strange force of power had separated them but even seconds prior to that, the spider had been forced onto his knees in a sudden bout of pain. It actually disturbed Sakura a little bit, just recalling the event. The simple image of Pīta, grovelling on the floor and clutching his head as though it were about to split in two. She'd never heard him scream before, she'd heard him yell, shout, grandstand and every other word she could think of to describe him raising his voice.

But she'd never heard him feel the need to cry out in agony, and it shocked her. How full of rage and anger it was, like he was trying to force his way through it and come out on top. As though it were some kind of fight, a fight that could've been physically won. She had no idea what was inside that head of his, but it was clearly causing him extreme discomfort.

Actually, that wasn't completely true. It was hard remembering exactly what the boy had said, but he had said something moments before he disappeared. The girl furrowed her pink brow as she wracked her mind, flipping through the pages of her memory to recover the exact words that had left his mouth. Sakura winced when she remembered, as the whispered words escaped his throat in a strangled cry.

"Spider-sense…" the pink haired ninja murmured to herself, the strange alien phrase rolling right off of her tongue.

He'd whispered it first, then yelled it as a warning. "What does it mean? He said it right before the attack, right before we were separated. Almost as if…" Sakura trailed off as a thought occurred to her, a rather silly and off the wall thought that she immediately regretted thinking.

She didn't want to say it, voice it out loud, because she knew she would've sounded like a complete idiot. But the thought persisted mentally, fining down her common sense and feeding her genuine curiosity. She started to put two and two together, slowly but surely. The way Pīta fought, how confident and cocksure he was, even in the face of total danger. The snow rabbit he'd managed to detect in the Land of Waves, the few instances where he'd dodged an attack he hadn't been able to see.

The most recent incident was the last straw for the girl; he'd managed to somehow see past the Transformation Jutsu of that Rain ninja, right off the bat. He always downplayed it, never answered Sakura's questions directly and was evasive as all hell. Which meant he was hiding something, which also meant that Sakura wasn't just being paranoid and that Pīta Pāka had an ability that enabled him to do things other ninja couldn't.

With all of her internal ramblings, Sakura had almost managed to miss a far off noise in the distance, the distinct sound of a twig snapping. The Genin was immediately on guard, clutching the thigh holster of her kunai out of sheer instinct, an innate reflex that triggered every time danger might've reared its ugly head.

Sakura tried not to draw too much attention to it, because she didn't want whoever was spying on her to know that she was onto them. It was funny, she wasn't even sure that somebody was following her, it could have very well been some of the local wildlife kicking up a fuss in the nearby mess of bushes. That would've been the rational explanation, but her gut was telling her a completely different thing altogether.

People knew when they were being watched, it was hard to explain or describe but when a pair of eyes that belonged to some stranger was roaming all over said person, it was tough to shake the feeling. The feeling of goose bumps covering the arms, the feeling that someone or something was hiding in the corner of the eye. It was almost as if they were hardwired into a person's DNA, little defence mechanisms to let them know that they weren't alone.

And regardless of the silence hanging in the sombre air around her, Sakura certainly did not feel alone. Her fingers lost their tense and rigid grip on her holster, her hand once again resting in her lap as she attempted to stay awake. It was late, getting even later, and Sakura had been conscious for so many hours. Her body had been consistently active and on the move ever since early morning, when Proctor-Anko had first sent them off into the unknown depths of the Forest of Death.

She hadn't known what to expect then, none of them had. Even with absolutely no information on hand, other than the constant warnings of the purple haired woman in charge and some of the ninja that had scrubbed out of the exams in the years prior, the rookies were swimming up creek without a paddle. Sakura remembered how hesitant she'd been, how cautious and reserved she'd appeared while Naruto was just as eager as he always was and Pīta verbally fenced with Proctor-Anko.

Sakura recalled the advice she'd been given upon entering the forest she now inhabited, the kind words her missing teammate had elected to impart to her in an effort to cheer her up. "As long as we stick together, we can do this." The girl silently contemplated those words as she repeated them, humouring herself somewhat as she attempted to replicate Pīta's thick, flowing and fast-paced accent.

The irony was not lost on her, that the one to preach teamwork had gotten himself lost somewhere. He was an idiot, leaving her all alone with Naruto, all alone to fend for herself. Sakura sighed, she really wanted to blame the lad, he was the one who'd convinced her that everything would be okay after all. But she couldn't summon the bitterness required to do so, her little body was simply too exhausted.

The only thing she was going to greet Pīta with when he showed his masked face again was a hug, not a lecture on how everything was his fault. The girl ran a ragged hand through her long pink locks, she wasn't quite sure whether that was healthy or not. The thoughts running through her head, echoes of fear and glimpses of hope. Fear in the shape of Orochimaru, and hope in the shape of her missing friend.

Sakura wanted to be held to the same standard as her teammates, she'd silently decided during their last little get-together with Kakashi-Sensei. She didn't want to be the weak one, the unreliable one, the one nobody could've counted on in their time of need. She was seriously starting to doubt herself now that she was the one in charge, she was the one taking care of everyone, she was the one who held life in her very hands.

There was no sugar-coating it, Sakura was scared. The Kunoichi was terrified that something was going to happen, that Orochimaru wasn't done with Sasuke yet and would find his way back to them, smiling viciously with that serpentine mouth of his, prepared to carry out something unspeakable. It was things like that that kept her awake and alert, ensuring her shimmering emerald eyes couldn't relish in the sweet peacefulness of rest.

It was nightmarish in a sense, Sakura couldn't remember the last time she'd had a nightmare. No, she was lying to herself. She recalled perfectly, as if she'd just suffered it days ago, just when she'd last been unable to sleep. It was surprising how long ago it was, surprising still how clearly and concisely she could recall every single detail of those nightmares.

Apparently, people only remembered at least a third of their dreams once they'd woken up. Perhaps it was simply because nightmares were usually much more vivid, much more enveloping and immersive. Probably because fear was so potent, a powerful agent that could strike against the core of a person much more effectively than any other emotion could.

Well, baring love perhaps.

Regardless, the nightmares she'd been suffering from had actually come about shortly after she'd met and befriended Ino. It was hard to forget how meek and anxious she was back then, being ridiculed because of her large forehead didn't help either. Much like Hinata, Sakura reasoned. That changed when Ino had given her a bow, a pretty blue one to tie into her vibrant pink hair and take some of the focus off of her forehead. That had been the general idea anyway, nothing too complex and world changing for children.

Life was good; Sakura was chipper, happy and making friends. She saw Sasuke for the first time, how incredibly cool he was and instantly fell head over heels for him. She met Naruto and saw how much of an idiot he was, always trying to pester Sasuke day in and day out. She'd met Pīta a year before the Academy; he lived right below her after all. Her mother and his aunt had introduced them while they chatted, and he was the closest thing she'd had to a friend back then. And then she'd started school with all of the other kids, and Pīta had not.

The girl couldn't help but let a fond smile grace her lips, just picturing the way Iruka-Sensei had introduced the boy to the class in their infancy. How different he was back then, garbed in a thick red hoody that was a little too long in the sleeves, yet even then wearing that dark blue mask of his. Okay, so not so different in terms of attire. But in terms of attitude, Pīta seemed like a completely different person.

He was quiet, nervous. Probably because Iruka-Sensei highlighted the fact that Pīta was a special case, that it had taken a while to figure out what to do with him and by then, they were already halfway into their first year in the Academy. He didn't like the attention, Sakura recalled. She couldn't see it on account of the mask, but she bet he was turning beet red beneath that thing. He marched right over to his seat, being eyed and studied by every child present, even Naruto was squinting his eyes at him, trying to figure the boy out.

But nothing left that mouth of his, not until class ended and the kids were let out into the yard to play amongst each other. Typically, Naruto had a bone to pick with Sasuke, still so cool and aloof even at such a young age. They got into it, exchanging childish insults and remarks as a small crowd gathered.

The fight ended with Sasuke pinning the blonde to the ground, his sandal keeping Naruto firmly in place as he squirmed. Sakura remembered how all of the other girls had yelled and cheered, how Ino had been smiling all the way through. She was no saint either, she'd been hooked every step of the way too. Of course, things all came to a head when Pīta stepped in.

Sakura sighed wistfully as the first words the small class of rookies ever heard Pīta speak repeated in her head, how simple and to the point they were. "It's wrong to pick on someone weaker than you," she remembered how silent things had gotten; both Sasuke and Naruto were perplexed at the newcomer.

And then the laughing came to her, how everyone laughed and laughed and laughed at the new kid, daring to stand up to Sasuke. The one thing Sakura had trouble remembering was whether she laughed or not, she genuinely wasn't sure. She hoped that she hadn't, that she'd stayed neutral and hadn't chosen between her crush and her odd, out of school friend. But that was simply her hope; reality might've been the complete opposite.

The laughing stopped when Sasuke took his sandal off of Naruto and approached Pīta who, to his credit, didn't move an inch. Said mirth was replaced by eagerness, anticipation, as to what Sasuke was going to do to him. The girls once again cheered as Sasuke pushed Pīta as hard as he could've managed and just like that, the cheering once again stopped.

Pīta hadn't budged, hadn't moved an inch as he stared at Sasuke, confusion fraught in his eyes. It was strange, almost as if the boy was trying to figure out just why he'd pushed him. Needless to say, Pīta pushed back. The girls screamed and children scattered as Sasuke flew clear across the yard, fortunately into the waiting arms of Iruka-Sensei, who'd been strolling over to see just what all of the commotion was about.

At least, Sakura thought so. Pīta was reprimanded for using his powers in such a way and while Iruka didn't yell, he was certainly stern with his words. It was right around then that the boys started to warm up to Pīta, which lead to the lad opening up more and more. That was when the nightmares had started; when Sakura witnessed a boy manhandle another boy like he was made of paper.

Her adolescent mind was unable to make sense of things, it was the first time she'd seen Pīta use his powers to do something other than walk on walls or spin silk. It was unusual, granted an all new perspective to the girl. He'd scared her, given her nightmares and thinking about it, Sakura reasoned that was why they'd drifted apart.

It was almost funny, how things had turned out, how they were quite the opposite now. Looking over at an unconscious Sasuke, contemplating how they too had drifted apart. But Sakura had to ask herself, were they ever really that close to begin with? The red garbed ninja shook her head, attempting to cast that particular thought away and out of mind. Because she wasn't comfortable with the fact that she was more concerned about Pīta than she was about her crush, the dark haired lad lying asleep right in front of her.

Perhaps it was because she was tired, her mind was playing tricks on her, her exhaustion sapping her lithe body of energy and making her question things she wouldn't have normally questioned. Sakura held her face in her hands as the sky darkened overhead, she just wanted Naruto to wake up and Pīta to come and find them.

She just wanted to go to sleep, was that too much to ask?

---

The sword, a double edged jian by the looks of it, glowed with an ethereal blue as it suddenly shot its way towards Pīta. The ninja didn't need his spider-sense to perceive the immediate danger, pushing Anko clear and bending backwards. The blade soared directly over his contorted body, the shining blue reflected in his surprised brown orbs.

When it passed, Pīta shot straight back up onto level footing. Just in time too, as the sword came back around for a second go. He snapped his head to one side as it thrusted right for him, before having to duck as it sliced clean across. All the while, Orochimaru stood back and watched keenly. Pīta was actually a little impressed, intrigued even.

A sword that moved independently of its user, almost as if it had a mind of its own, was an exciting prospect. "How're you doing that? Chakra? Magnetic fields? Some sort of telekinetic link with the sword itself?" Pīta rifled through a list of probable methods, he was really just checking them off of a mental list as he actually had no clue.

However, it seemed one of his guesses had hit the nail on the head. "Bright boy, you continue to surprise. It's a pity you rely on your brawn more than that brain of yours," Orochimaru lectured, controlling the attacking blade with nothing more than his mind.

Pīta leapt into the air, legs spread into a split as the sword passed right under him. "What're you, my councillor? Of the two of us, who seems crazier?" He tried to keep his cool under such extreme circumstances, landing and swiftly turning to whip out a spare kunai.

Orochimaru witnessed the boy attempt to fence with his weapon, glowing steel clashing with portable metal. "A question that will be answered another day, I have one far more demanding in mind." The man moved his finger, just a slight gesture of will that had untold consequences.

The levitating blade, a Sword of Kusanagi, abandoned the chinking and sparking of metal to soar straight for a downed Anko. "No!" Pīta's heart leapt into his throat as he let fly a web-line with his kunai-less hand, catching the hilt of the blade.

The resistance was overwhelming, far greater than Orochimaru's punch had been earlier. As such, Pīta had to drop the kunai and hold onto his line with both hands. He planted his sandals, bracing himself and bending at the knees a little. He couldn't use his adhesive abilities on the soil beneath him, it wasn't solid enough.

His arms were tense, solid masses of small yet incredibly durable muscles doing everything in their power to halt the sword in its mid-air tracks. "What is stronger? My mental will… or you?" Orochimaru posed, narrowing his golden eyes as he focused all the more.

Pīta gritted his teeth as he felt himself sliding along the forest floor, slowly but surely. His arms were shaking, he was being gradually overpowered by something he couldn't touch, couldn't fight back against. It wasn't fair in the slightest, such a cheap move in Pīta's mind. His fear ridden eyes were focused on nothing but Anko, crouched on the floor, clutching at her neck and unable to move.

Her breathing was slow and steady, she was just so exhausted. "You can't win this battle, Pīta. No amount of ridiculous strength is going to stop that sword from reaching its destination, the only way to do that is to stop me." Orochimaru explained, carefully informing the lad just how he was going to lose.

Though, his words had another unintended effect. "Duly noted," Pīta murmured, a bolt of lightning striking his brain as he took a chance.

He let one hand slide off of his slack web-line, turning and firing off yet another. Pīta hit his target, tagging Orochimaru directly in his chest. The man had been so focused on overwhelming Pīta with his mind; he hadn't been able to move in time. Pīta gave a simple tug, pulling him into the air towards him.

And then, locking both hands on the strand holding the sword yet again, Pīta pulled with all his adolescent might. It wasn't enough to halt the sword in its momentum, but he had managed to pull it off course and aim it at another unsuspecting target altogether. Orochimaru threw his hands up in defence as he spotted the otherworldly glow of the Sword of Kusanagi headed straight for him; he reflexively changed the weapon into a harmless snake, just fast enough to avoid being impaled.

While the sword no longer presented any danger to him, Pīta did. Orochimaru landed directly on the end of Pīta's fist, driving its way right into his gut and well and truly knocking the wind out of him. The twelve year old Genin didn't let up, following up with a savage right cross to the jaw. Blood sprayed all over Pīta's angry, narrowed eyes as the man span in place.

It wasn't enough to completely knock him out, so Orochimaru used his own momentum to come around and sweep the boy's legs, right out from under him. The Yonin wasted no time as Pīta's back collided with the soft soil, raising both arms high with the intention of smashing the boy into a bloody pulp. Pīta's spider-sense warned him, but he'd just been too slow to react.

Both fists collided with his small chest, urging a startled grunt out of him. Pīta retaliated by gripping Orochimaru and forcing him to the floor with him, wrapping both of his legs around the Shinobi's chest and squeezing with all his might. He felt his ribcage compress, struggling to stand against tons of pressure being poured onto his skeletal structure.

It was only through the man's countless years of self-experimentation that his bones didn't snap and cave in on themselves, though it didn't stop the pain. "Bet you didn't see this coming, huh? Get ready to tap out, Rochi!" The boy boasted, watching as Orochimaru struggled and squirmed in his vice-like grip.

A burst of Pīta's spider-sense put him on edge and the lad was having a hard time trying to determine how the man could've attacked him, especially in such a limiting position. He received his answer when Orochimaru sank both fangs into the leg compressing his chest, prompting a startled scream to die in Pīta's throat. He didn't waste any time as he pulled his free leg back and slammed it against the Yonin's head, having varying degrees of success.

Although he had forced Orochimaru off of him, kicking up dirt as he tumbled and slid some distance away, the Sound ninja had kept his canines firmly lodged in Pīta's leg the entire time. He'd been left with a long, ugly gash, streaking down the entirety of his leg and openly bleeding into the forest air. The leg of his pants had been shredded, and Pīta's face paled as he set eyes on the wound.

The two ninja squaring off with each other both rose to stand, making slow and equally measured movements as they took their sweet time. "Cheater," Pīta grimaced, holding onto his damaged leg with a twitching hand.

Orochimaru flicked his tongue into the air, tasting it just as a regular snake did. "Nobody said anything about fighting fair, boy. Multiple Striking Shadow Snakes!" He quickly braced himself as he yelled, raising his arm and pointing his open sleeve toward the unsuspecting Genin.

Pīta's chocolate orbs widened as they were faced with several huge serpents, a dark and dim green in their colour, all winding their way toward him at an alarming rate. "Could be worse… at least it's not rats," the boy murmured to himself, ducking below the slimy body of a snake as it struck out at him.

He swiftly uppercut it, before fluidly moving to the right to avoid a strike at his chest. Pīta wasted no time in reacting, bringing both of his palms around the snake and clapping, crushing the animal completely. His spider-sense forced him to pay attention to the snake whipping its way towards his legs and he jumped because of it, straight up and then straight down, stamping into the ground with both sandals, hard enough to kill it immediately.

Another chime of his danger sense, though more intense, garnered the pre-teen's attention. Instead of attacking him one at a time, multiple snakes converged on his position and went for the kill. Time seemed to slow to a crawl as Pīta watched their slit irises and diamond patterned bodies draw closer and closer, forcing him to move at the last possible second. The spider was already high in the air when they hit the soft Earth, right where he'd been standing.

He cocked both hands, firing stream after stream of spider-silk in an effort to tangle them up and reduce their mobility. While they struggled below, a particularly large snake—straggling from the mess of slithering greenery—went straight for the red and blue thing suspended in the air. Once again, Pīta waited and timed things just right.

He flipped just as the snake darted at him, evading it completely and then planting the soles of his sandals down on its long, serpentine body. He used the snake to get closer to his target, sliding down its back much like that of a slippery slope, aiming right for Orochimaru. Pīta dived, tackling him without warning and holding nothing back in the meantime. The pair went barrelling straight through the base of a tree, leaving a gaping hole in its body as wood shattered and splintered every which way.

The duo hit the ground, rolling and tumbling hard as they pounded into each other, fighting for absolute supremacy. Until finally, they stopped when Pīta caught the man's fist and laid into him with his own, stunning Orochimaru completely. He stayed there for a moment—their momentum having worn off—dirt in his long ebony hair and a kid crouched over him menacingly, pinning him down.

Pīta's eyes narrowed, his nose scrunching up beneath his dark blue mask. "Gotcha," he sneered, his fingerless gloved fist reeled back and ready to make the man see stars.

Orochimaru smirked, his lips stretching as he gazed up at the victorious lad. "On the contrary, I've got you." The elder, more experienced and much more dangerous Shinobi twisted his words as Pīta tilted his head in confusion.

Until he felt a stinging sensation freeze him in place, his panicked eyes quickly glancing to his left to find two snakes latched onto his shoulder. Pīta gritted his teeth as their fangs dug deep, pumping something into his bloodstream with every slow second that passed by. He hadn't sensed them, when had they… or he had sensed them, and he was simply too caught up in the fight to have even noticed them.

Pīta felt his muscles tense and seize up, his raised arm shaking as it struggled to push itself forward and land the coup de grâce on the freak beneath him. "Here, let me." Orochimaru saw it, so instead offered his own services.

He didn't hold back as he drilled his fist into Pīta's waiting jaw, the force of the blow snapping his head to the left. "Snake venom, a particularly potent venom at that. One drop is usually enough to kill a fully grown man, you've just been hit with two full doses." He fell without resistance, without a word or a whimper, his masked face mashing into the dirt floor of the Forest of Death.

Orochimaru calmly climbed onto his feet, wiping a thin trail of blood off of his chin as he stood over Pīta. If he'd acknowledged the man's words, he didn't show it. He couldn't move, could barely even breathe, his lungs burning with each rapid intake of oxygen. The boy's vision began to blur, the surrounding trees and bushes all melding into one another to create a nauseating mass of green. Pīta's ears were ringing, allowing him to hear nothing but a high pitched tone as blood slowly leaked out of them.

His spider-sense was on red alert, begging him, pleading him to get up. "This should make for some interesting research, how does the physiology of a spider handle foreign toxins? I'm quite aware of that miraculous healing factor of yours; your body is in a constant state of repair. Heh… I wonder if you can even get drunk," Orochimaru observed, gazing down at the child as he lied there.

Prone, face down in the dirt like a dying animal. "You did well, boy. It's almost admirable, just how valiant you were. I came here today in search of one candidate and it seems I'm leaving having found two, I suppose it's my lucky day." He planted his sandal clad foot on the boy, turning him over with minimum effort.

His chest was heaving, his heartrate most likely speeding up to ridiculous levels. His body, even with his superhuman immune system, was struggling to deal with the obnoxious amount of poison infecting him. Orochimaru was so taken by the child lying at his feet, twitching and writhing as he struggled to cling to life, that he failed to anticipate the handful of senbon needles headed his way.

They hit their mark, riddling his chest and forcing him to take a step back and away from Pīta. "Get away from him!" Orochimaru heard a voice as he winced, raising his gaze to find Anko charging at him.

She was on her last legs, sweat coating her skin to give it a healthy bronze sheen. But Orochimaru was impressed; he assumed he'd lost her when he and the boy tumbled through the forest. Then again, she was an expert tracker and it didn't take a genius to follow the path of wonton destruction they'd left behind.

He stopped her in her tracks for the umpteenth time that day, once again using his ace in the hole. "Be silent, Anko. My business is with the boy and him alone," he told her sternly, activating her Heaven's Curse Mark.

Anko almost dropped to her knees as she caught herself, screaming out in unbridled agony as the black mark on her neck set her skin ablaze. She was ready to collapse; she'd been barely keeping up with her dancing partner when the superhuman soldier lying on the ground had crashed into things. The thought of Pīta allowed the woman to open her pale brown eyes, shining with pain and anguish as they welled up and tears threatened to burst.

Pīta was just lying there, staring up at the dense trees overhead, just trying to make sense of things after he'd given his all. Anko didn't have superhuman abilities; she couldn't sense danger or hear things no regular person could. But at that particular moment, being pushed to the edge as her former teacher tortured her, poked and prodded at her body, her very soul… Anko could've sworn that she heard Pīta's heartbeat. At first it was fast, unimaginably fast, almost too fast for her to distinguish and separate individual beats.

But then it slowed, the rising and falling motion of his chest growing fewer and farther between. "No," Anko whispered into the forest air, he was dying and there wasn't a damn thing she could've done to stop it.

The woman slammed those glistening eyes of hers shut, gritting her teeth as she refused to accept the harsh reality of the situation. "No!" She called out, urging a roll of the eyes out of her former sensei.

He'd never pegged her for being so dramatic, and he was about to lecture her on such hysterics. He would have, had she not wrestled her pain into submission and bolted right for him. The woman was nowhere near as fast as him, could never hope to have been either. Orochimaru could've side-stepped the attack, dodged it with frightening ease such were his abilities. He could have, but he didn't.

The Yonin was simply too stunned, for what must have been the umpteenth time that day. The Heaven's Curse Mark was under his complete control, its owner vulnerable for Orochimaru to shape and form to his heart's desire. Anko was throwing all of that certainty and security in his face as she tackled him to the ground, forcing him to lie down in the dirt of the forest, hard.

A few feet away from where Pīta was struggling to breathe, Anko started to hammer away at the confused man. "I'll die before I let you taint another student!" She cried out, slamming her fists into his pale face over and over again.

She did it so many times, struck him with such ferociousness that it put wild animals to shame, the skin of her knuckles began to wear and tear, peeling away to let blood flow freely. Her face was glistening, even under the dimness of twilight, she was dripping with sweat. So much effort, it was a shame it all proved for naught.

Orochimaru came to his senses eventually, suffering a brutal beating for what felt like days in his dazed state. He caught a slow and laboured fist, wet and slick with the blood of the woman and didn't hesitate to hit her back. He floored her instantly, one blow dismantling her exhausted state as her lip burst. Anko lay there for a moment, breathing hard and heavy as Orochimaru diligently rose to his feet.

Anko cursed, spitting a wad of blood as she gazed up at the Shinobi. "You really do have a death wish, don't you?" Orochimaru queried, returning the gaze, though with not even half of the intense hatred she held.

She nodded, rolling off of her arm and onto her back, propping herself up with her elbows. "And you still look like a damn girl," Anko grinned, her pearly white teeth stained red, as if daring him to attack her once more.

Orochimaru didn't disappoint, stamping down hard on the woman's face. It wasn't hard enough to split her skull like a watermelon, because he was certainly capable of that, but it did serve to bust her nose. More blood diluted her complexion, bleeding into the fair skin of her face and knocking the fight right out of her.

"Hit… like one too," though she still retained that abrasive attitude of hers, proving that she was one of the only people that could get underneath the man's skin.

His calm and menacing demeanour did nothing to scare her, one of the many negatives of teaching her at such a young age. "You know how to test my patience, girl… I've give you that." He was about to strike her again, deliver a knockout blow and wipe that smug smile off of her face.

But something grabbed his ankle, a weak and shaking grip just barely strong enough to gain the man's attention. Orochimaru curiously gazed down through the gap between his arm and his torso, finding a prone Pīta Pāka, having somehow crawled his way over to him, through rich dirt and fallen leaves. The man's golden eyes widened a fraction, his eyebrows arching as his expectations kept being blown right out of the water.

The child was lay there, tugging at his dark green pant leg. It was enough to draw the man's attention away from a severely injured Anko, but the strained act didn't achieve much else. There wasn't anything Pīta could've done; he'd barely managed to drag his way over to the fighting pair, using every ounce of unnatural strength his body possessed. But it made Orochimaru forget about Anko for the time being, and that was all that mattered.

She couldn't take the punishment, not like he could.

The missing-nin wasted no time in turning around to hoist the lad into the air, holding him by the front of his ragged and torn flak jacket. "You continue to astound me, boy. With that much poison flowing through your veins, I expected you to have slipped off this mortal coil by now. But here you are, still trying to protect her no less." He observed, that fraction of admiration in his eyes growing by the second.

Pīta couldn't respond as he hung there limply, his arms slack by his side and head tilted slightly like a lifeless doll. Orochimaru was rather surprised at first, just how light he was. He shook his head, of course he was light, he was a twelve year old Genin after all. But the way he threw around so much weight, so much power, it had momentarily caught him off-guard. The boy couldn't have weighed more than ninety pounds soaking wet, grossly betraying his monstrous strength.

Anko watched her former teacher indulge in his newfound interest, having been beaten and quickly discarded like an unwanted stray. "I'm going to gift you with something, something I think you've more than proven to be worthy of. I won't lie, it's going to hurt but the outcome will allow you a mere taste of the power I possess." Orochimaru felt the need to explain to Pīta what was going to happen to him, though he wasn't sure why.

The boy appeared completely out of it, his eyes glazed over and breathing slow and laboured. "The poison coursing through your veins might yet still kill you, it might not. Think of it as one final test, the result of which has yet to be determined. Personally, I hope you do survive. It'd be a terrible waste of a curse mark otherwise," a subtle, devious grin split his face as Anko's heart leapt into her throat.

She couldn't move, and so could only look on in horror as Orochimaru sank his fangs deep into Pīta's neck. His canines, less dog-like and more snake-like in nature, easily broke through the thin dark blue fabric of the mask covering his jaw and neck, penetrating his skin like a hot poker. The boy twitched and writhed, but could not scream, he simply didn't possess the effort to scream.

Orochimaru worked his particular brand of magic, Chakra travelling through the bite and into Pīta's skin, slowly forming the three-tomoe marking of the Heaven's Curse Mark. Things were going rather swimmingly for the man, though he didn't notice Pīta's eyes snap wide open and suddenly morph in their unusual colour. The soft brown was replaced by red and blue, a vibrant and burning intensity in one eye and an ice cold storm in the other.

When he realized that something had gone askew, it was far too late. Red and blue Chakra began to seep out of the wound on Pīta's neck, forcing Orochimaru away quite violently. He flailed in mid-air, crashing through a gathering of bushes and thickets as Pīta dropped to the dirt ground like dead weight. Anko froze in place, mouth ajar and light brown eyes like saucers as she witnessed the entire event play out.

Orochimaru rose to his feet, a shaking hand covering his burning mouth. "What… but how?" He murmured, a very clearly disturbed expression forcing its way onto his face.

He gave one last look at the scene, his golden eyes darting over to a recovering Anko, before he ultimately decided to depart. He'd spent enough time duking it out with his former student and the spider-heir, as much as he wanted to stay for answers, he simply couldn't. Orochimaru hadn't finished completely applying the curse mark when something reacted to the overabundance of Chakra he was forcing into Pīta's system, he had no clue what and that was something he did not like.

The day was drawing to a close, night was upon them and although questions filled his mind, he had successfully marked the Uchiha boy. However, unbeknownst to Orochimaru, he'd also left the fight with an unsuspecting souvenir. He was caked in blood, specifically that of Pīta Pāka.

As her old teacher swiftly and strangely exited the scene, Anko just barely managed to crawl her way over to the unmoving boy, lay with his eyes shut in the middle of the Forest of Death. Her first instinct was to check on the curse mark, evaluate just what had been done to the kid. Anko saw the fang marks in the neck of his mask, but it wasn't enough. She didn't care that he elected to hide his face for some ridiculous reason, just like Kakashi.

The woman gently removed the fabric, her eyes ignoring the face she didn't know and immediately zoning in on the boy's neck. Her breath hitched in her throat for a solid moment, she'd been fully expecting to find the hideous black mark that plagued her on his skin. Shock filled Anko, for the only thing that tainted Pīta were the small protrusions of Orochimaru's fangs.

"No curse mark… how is there no curse mark? How did you… how the hell?!" She felt herself getting worked up, so many questions cluttering her mind and threatening to fill the air.

She would've sat there in stunned silence for longer, the cogs of her mind trying to work through things, had she not noticed something of vital importance. Pīta wasn't breathing, hadn't been for a solid minute. Anko immediately snapped out of her stupor, her hands touching his face and feeling around his jaw to check for a pulse, just to be thorough. Her fears were confirmed when she found none, her fingers unable to feel the rhythmic sensation of life pumping through a person's body.

"Come on, kid… don't even think about doing this to me." Anko muttered, getting to work as she haphazardly gripped Pīta's wrecked flak jacket and tore it off of him.

She threw it aside before placing both of her hands on his chest, lessons she'd learned a long time ago of basic first aid coming back to her. Anko pumped as hard as she could, she didn't have to be gentle, she knew full well the boy could take it. Time passed, seconds that felt like hours and minutes that felt like days. Still no movement, still no pulse.

Anko alternated, leaning down to perform mouth to mouth and fill his lungs with her own recycled air. "You're not dying here, Pāka. You're gonna get your ass up right now or so help me God, I'll kill you myself." She pumped his chest, pressed her lips against his and blew as much as she could manage, repeating the process over and over again.

The woman stopped, frustration filling her as she looked down at the lifeless lad, her eyes wide as the reality of the situation began to set in. She'd lost him; he was just some random kid with a sense of humour that had decided to stick his nose into her business. But sorrow filled every fibre of her being, he was just so young. It hit harder because he was one of her own, a fellow Leaf ninja, a brother-in-arms.

He was one of Kakashi's kids and she'd lost him, she'd gotten him killed. "No… no, no, no! You don't get to check out after all of that! You're not putting this on my conscience, I refuse to explain to your teacher that you died defending me! You stupid kid! I won't do it! Now get up!" Anko threw her trench coat off her shoulders, just allowing better room for movement as she raised both of her fists high.

She didn't hesitate, gritting her teeth and bringing both balled up fists down as hard as she could. It was astonishing, how much it hurt simply hitting the boy. It was like punching concrete, solid and completely unyielding. Anko almost fell back in surprise when Pīta took a sharp intake of oxygen, his chocolate brown eyes snapping open, frantic and panicked.

Anko did the first thing that came to mind, as if it were an innate instinct on her part. "Don't you ever—ever—do that to me again," she took his gloved hand in her own and held it, squeezing tightly to make sure that he was squeezing back.

It set the child at ease, calming him and his suddenly erratic heartrate down as he lay there, breathing easy. "I've got you… I've got you," Anko assured, she simply couldn't help it as a grin cracked its way onto her sweat-drenched face.

Pīta didn't respond, didn't notice that he wasn't wearing his mask anymore. Instead, he simply squeezed her hand all the harder and let his head lull back, devoid of strength and the will to stay awake.

---

Author's Note: And there it is, this whole Forest of Death is really dragging on, huh? I'm sorry, originally I wanted to keep it all contained to one chapter but as I neared the actual part in the story, I realized just how much really happens in the Forest of Death. Plus, I expanded upon a lot of stuff that didn't happen in canon.

Anko's longer fight with Orochimaru came about in my desire to explore the connection between her and her former sensei, something that kind of got the shaft in canon. She's a broken woman and really fun to write, especially when playing off of Pīta. Her own summons, Tsuki, is an entirely original character created by Deadpoolsson, he was courteous enough to let me use her and really give the fight between Anko and Orochimaru some meat.

Pīta's brawl with Orochimaru was inevitable, it was only logical that he'd have some form of interest in Pīta and I wanted to really throw the two together just to see what would happen.

Sakura's little tidbit was some room to breathe, this chapter really needed it. Any opportunity that comes up to improve Sakura as a character as canon Sakura is sorely lacking, I will take it as I adore the character despite her shortcomings. She had a small but important part to play in this chapter, but next chapter she will get a much larger role with her own hardships to face.

I hope you guys enjoyed things, I know I did. Thanks for reading!

Guest Reviews:

Aztec 13: I'm glad, because the raw brutality of the fight was something I was really trying to capture. The Sinister Six is definitely something that has crossed my mind, and seeing as how four Spidey rogues have been introduced, I don't see why it can't be done. Thanks!

Bael92: I really like the idea of Pīta summoning spiders too, they will all have their own unique personalities and traits, and their own dynamics with Pīta. At the moment, I don't have any plans to reupoload those Spidey/Young Justice crossovers, sorry. Thanks for the review!

atom king: It's certainly an idea, but I'm not planning on including the movies in this story. If any Marvel characters appear, they'll most likely just be cameos or one-off adventures. Thanks!

Guest1: Hope you liked it!

Guest2: Pīta will certainly have a dark side, there's no such thing as an entirely pure being. And when Pīta's dark side does surface, which won't happen until he's older and more experienced and powerful, it'll reflect some of the emotions he represses simply because he's a good person. It will be Venom, Carnage won't be appearing in this story. Thanks!

DocKucCRO: I'm glad I can make things believable for Pīta in this world, I don't plan on killing Scorpion any time soon but sooner or later, Pīta might get his hands bloody. As for Sage Mode, Pīta will have something similar when he's older but it'll be his own unique thing and related to his spider-powers, specifically the spider-sense. Thanks!

Guest3: That it does, glad someone took the time to research it. Kudos!

coldblue: 1) Mikio, Kuentin and Saidai will definitely have their own agenda post-exams. Whether that brings them into league with Orochimaru or they go their separate ways has yet to be seen, but anything could happen at this point.

2) Pīta will definitely encounter the trio again, the next time he sees them will be during the preliminary fights where he will face one of them again. I won't say who, but they didn't get much of a chance to show what they were really capable of last chapter.

3) That was a key moment for Pīta, I ceased the opportunity to very clearly distance this incarnation of Spider-Man to the mainstream one. Clearly, if he's in a tough spot, this Pīta is willing to do almost anything to survive. This time he stopped short of killing, but in the future, he may not have that luxury.

4) Pīta will definitely have some beef with Dosu's team, but he won't fully get into it with them until the invasion. I don't want to spoil anything, but it's almost uncanny how alike Dosu is to Shocker, eh?

As for first stage curse mark Sasuke, I don't at all think that he'd be a problem for Pīta. While his speed and strength are enhanced, Sasuke clearly struggled breaking Zaku's arms in canon, while Pīta wouldn't have any trouble ripping a kid in half like a phonebook. Sasuke will need much more than a tattoo to match Pīta's strength, remember that twelve year old Pīta is about as strong if not stronger than mainstream experienced Pīta due to growing up with his powers.

5) As you read this chapter, Pīta is an extremely fast healer. If the injury is not potentially fatal, it'll only take hours at most for him to heal from injuries that other ninja would heal from in days/weeks. Pīta's essentially a super soldier, his body is in a constant state of repair and renewal. Naruto's healing factor is strengthened to superhuman levels by the Nine-Tails Chakra, no Nine-Tails Chakra and his healing factor wouldn't compare to Pīta's.

6) No, I haven't. That's not to say I won't ever, but right now, I'm focusing on things that I can write well. And Spider-Man is one of those things. Thanks for the extensive review and awesome questions!