Disclaimer: I am evil incarnate. Evil incarnate doesn't own Naruto.


Being an Edo Tensei, she needed neither sleep, food or rest. She worked non-stop on her seal design, only taking breaks to visit or take visits from Kabuto. They were the only companions inside this underground series of caves, and their interactions were inevitable. The Sage was always away, doing whatever he needed to do to stop the Ten-tails.

Kabuto on the other hand was always there, researching ways to make himself stronger. At first he had been more than receptive, positively friendly even. His receptiveness was no doubt a result of his long years of isolation. Over time, however, the man seemed to grown more withdrawn. The more she worried about him and the more she comforted him, the more curt he became.

Even though he spoke less, Kabuto began to visit more, often asking her to relate stories about her own life and absorbing every detail with rapt attention.

The man must've been lonely. She couldn't blame him. His entire village had been slaughtered right under his eyes. He'd only barely escaped with his life. While she hadn't watched her village be destroyed, she had seen Minato die. She was proud of him. Proud of his sacrifice and yet.. it wasn't fair. It wasn't fair that the people she loved had all disappeared, wiped off the Earth. Even baby Naruto- just the thought would leave her feeling almost utterly inconsolable whenever she allowed her mind to wander.

Kabuto's feeling of loss was something she could understand, and she vowed to do everything she could for this man who was doing everything he could to deter the end of the world. It was this thought that drove her. She would do her best. For what was left of the world. For Kabuto.

Other than for Kabuto's increased inclination toward silence, Kushina's desire to make the man realize that he wasn't alone seemed to be working. Maybe reticence was just his nature.

She just hoped that he wouldn't be sad when it came time to release her soul back into the pure world.


-Intermission-


Deep in one of the brighter rooms of the many caverns underneath the former village of the Hidden Mist, a man sat in a chair, grimacing in pain. He grit his teeth as he combatted the effects of the venom that coursed through his blood. The syringe and needle clattered to the floor and his arm began to shake involuntarily.

The sensation of having every single cell and nerve being infiltrated, tested, torn and rebuilt was beyond painful. The only thought keeping the man sane was his knowledge that at the end of the day, it'd all be worth it. He would become and then surpass Orochimaru. Then..

His thoughts fell upon a certain red-head, and his heart couldn't help but flutter. He didn't think that he'd ever have the chance again to be the target of such affection, and Uzumaki Kushina gave it to him in droves.

He'd enjoyed fooling her. Those first few days had him more entertained than any fool's show could ever match. Her naive belief in everything he said and her earnesty was enough to leave him bawling in laughter far into the nights.

As time passed the hilarity of the situation passed for him. Her determination and her cheer, on the other hand, never faltered. Deep down, he knew she was doing it for him. It more than reminded him of Mother, the woman who he had once 'loved' for raising him and giving him an identity. Danzo had changed that. He'd changed all of that. Not only had the old warhawk forced Mother onto a mission that lasted almost twenty years, he hadn't even needed her. She had been completely forgotten. In the end, Mother's conscription served no purpose. And he was the one who'd killed her on one of his own missions. It was an immense chance of fate. Mother hadn't even remembered his name. Had it all been a lie? If she'd really cared, she'd remember him wouldn't she?

She'd remember the orphanage.. wouldn't she?
It was all an act and he knew it. Genuine affection didn't exist except as an illusion.

But Uzumaki Kushina.. she gained absolutely nothing from being his friend. Her family and everything she valued were gone. Yet she somehow always seemed to find it in her to smile, to treat him kindly. It wasn't hatred of the false Ten-tails that drove her, it was her genuine desire to give him companionship and to save the world.. even if there was nothing left for her to save.
Was it really for him?

It was at this moment that the fluid circulating in his system suddenly began to spread above his arm. Kabuto grit his teeth. He could bear this pain.

After an extended period, however, the pain didn't cease, and the fluids continued into his shoulder. Kabuto felt a twinge of panic. The venom should've been subsumed several minutes ago. Kabuto gasped as the thought destroyed his endurance. It should've stopped. The man fell to the floor, clasping his arm and screamed. It didn't help.

Although screaming didn't make the pain any better, but he couldn't stop. Kabuto's screaming rent down the cavern, echoing loudly off the walls. The pain became more than unbearable. Tears welled up in the snake-man's eyes as he choked out a desperate plea. "Orochimaru-sama. Help. Orochimaru-sama. Please.."

After what felt like an eternity of begging, Kabuto realized that he couldn't stand the pain anymore. He'd rather die. Nothing was worth this pain. Not even the prospect of attaining Sage Mode.

Tripping and crawling, Kabuto clawed his way to the large surgical tools that laid on the table nearby, mumbling 'make it stop' under his breath.

"Kabuto!"

The voice made Kabuto freeze in place, striking a nerve in his pain-addled brain. He dropped the knife that he had clutched waveringly above his heart. The weapon clattered to the floor and Kabuto along with it as he writhed in place. "Kushina." He gasped. "Help."

The redhead closed the distance between them almost instantaneously. In the back of his head, a small voice in Kabuto's head alerted him of the woman's invasion into his private lab. She shouldn't be here. How'd she even get in?!

He rolled and slammed himself into the legs of one of the lab tables, his apprehension forgotten as the venom of the latest variant of Orochimaru's DNA ate into his lungs. And then he was suddenly shrouded in a firm hold. Kabuto shook, weak from sheer physical and mental fatigue as he fought a losing internal battle. Distantly, he heard a soothing voice filter into his ears.
"Kabuto. Don't move. I can help you."

The venom reached his heart and Kabuto screamed louder than he had previously. He spasmed greatly, one of his arms swinging out and puncturing the woman who held him.

Kushina gasped, causing Kabuto to stop as he momentarily forgot that she was merely an impure resurrection. I've killed her!

The split second pause was long enough for Kushina to place her hand over the exact point on Kabuto's forehead where the Gate of Healing - second of the Eight Gates - resided. A sealing script appeared on his forehead and Kabuto slumped like a doll.


-Intermission-


Kushina slowly detached the hand stabbed into her chest, whatever wonder she would've felt at the way that flakes of skin, tissue and some paper-like substances refilled the gap were all but forgotten

She carried the seemingly lifeless man toward one of the tables and set him down. He was still conscious, but his central nerves were disconnected from the rest of his body, rendering him incapable of movement but free from pain.

"I don't know what you did, but I can't release you. Whatever you injected into your arm has spread through your entire body." Kushina searched frantically for clues as to what her friend had done to himself and how she was to go about curing him.

"K-kushina. D-don't. Don't touch my things. Please. Dangerous. Private"

The redhead stopped. He wasn't supposed to be able to speak. "What should I do?"

"Release. Seal."

Kushina furrowed her brows. "But your pain!"

"Inconsequential. Necessary. As long as-" Kabuto faltered. "-as long you're here."

The woman gripped his hand in her own. "I'll stay as long as you need me. Just don't do anything stupid." She put her other palm onto his forehead. "I'm releasing the seal."


-Intermission-


Kabuto lay gasping for breath. Droplets of perspiration expired from his forehead as his body readjusted from its sheer physical and mental exertions. It was finally over, and he didn't look forward to the next dose.

Kushina promptly left and came back with a cup of some kind of liquid. "Drink this."

Kabuto narrowed his eyes. She didn't search through his medicine cabinet did she? "What is it?"
"It's just water, but it'll make you feel better."

Kabuto took the cup and drank deeply.

"So you were Orochimaru's student?"
Kabuto nearly choked, but managed to keep his face serene. "How?"

"It's the same way I knew that you needed help." Kabuto gave Kushina a quizzical look, and Kushina swiftly continued. "I think it's your Edo Tensei, but I could hear you screaming out for help. You were.. you were asking for Orochimaru."

Kabuto stared into the woman's flaking face. That's right. She'd died before Orochimaru had defected. It was OK. "Orochimaru-sama came to my village after the Hidden Leaf was destroyed." Kabuto lied. "He was one of few survivors, and he saw talent in me. He taught me almost everything I know today. Without his teachings, I don't know where I'd be right now."

Kushina stared into her lap in thought. "Who else survived?"

The man paused for a moment. "The Sannin Tsunade survived. She wasn't in the Hidden Leaf at the time - or so I heard. She might even be alive now. Other than that, I don't really know." Kabuto quickly changed the topic. "How did you get in?"

"I-" Kushina looked away for a brief moment. "I'm sorry."

"Sorry.." Kabuto made a conscious effort to control his emotion, wondering if she knew what he was thinking.

"Yes. I've always known how to counter the seals that you used to close off the lab."

"What?!"
"I should've told you. I know you didn't want me inside, so I stayed away, but you were in trouble and I had to help."

Kabuto slumped back. "If you knew how to do it, why did you never sneak in? Cynicism is natural in the Shinobi world."

"I know but.. the Shinobi world is gone. And I like you. I wouldn't want to break any trust you had in me. I know you have some secrets. I understand, and I know you'll tell me whenever you're ready to do so."

Kabuto swallowed as Kushina got up, more cracks forming on her face. "Let me get you more water."

"Kushina. I-"

"Kabuto. I understand. I'm sorry for breaking into your lab."

And then she was gone, leaving Kabuto to just stare wide-eyed at the place where she'd been standing. He couldn't believe what he was about to say to her. An idiot redhead who believed every lie he told her. The stupid woman who gave him every benefit of the doubt, who believed him, trusted him and kept him company for no other reason than to brighten his day.. the same woman who spoke about her husband in every other conversation they'd had.

Kabuto shot up violently and proceeded to smash his fists on every surface he could get his hands on. "GOD FUCKING DAMNIT KABUTO! HOW DARE YOU?!" -he swiped a clutter of equipment off of one of his operating tables, causing them to clatter onto the floor- "AN EDO TENSEI ZOMBIE?! REALLY?! OF ALL PEOPLE?!" -Kabuto flipped the table over- "WHAT THE FUCKING FUCK OF A FUCK YOU JUST FUCKING STUPID IDIOT! GAAAAAAAHH!"


-A/N-


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