Disclaimer: I own nothing but enjoy nonetheless.
Hello! it has been a while but we couldn't go into the new year without at least one last chapter, granted I have my reservations about that idea but if you are reading this then it's too late now. Either way I hope you enjoy the chapter and thank you all for sticking with me, I know I have neglected this story a bit with the other stuff I'm working on but I've come to realize that I am just happier writing what I want when it stikes me so I apologize in advance if I end up writing a ton of other fics in the meantime lol.
Anyway, I won't keep you, I hope you enjoy the chapter and I will see you all at the bottom like always! PLEASE READ THE AN AT THE END BEFORE YOU REVIEW IF YOU WOULD, THANK YOU!
...
"How this brings me back, kukuku…"
Orochimaru chuckled to himself as he practically danced through the treetops, his snakelike form twisting and weaving past hails of throwing stars, kunai and the occasional jutsu thrown in for good measure. Searing jets of white hot flames burning the surroundings to ash while pressurized blasts of water sliced through the branches he was moving between attempting to drown him out.
It reminded him of working with his old team in some ways, though the distinct rumbling of the earth that all to often accompanied his third teammate presence was missing from the symphony of raining fire and flash floods. Hmph, to be reminiscing in the middle of fight… his age really was showing. Then again what did it matter? He would have all the time in the world when his ambitions were complete after all.
"Kukuku, come now children that can't be all you have?" He teased having idly noticed the barrage of attacks slowing. Dull yellow eyes looked upon the huffing genin with bemusement, the frustration on their faces was delightful in its own way and he almost felt a pang of sympathy for their plight.
To throw everything you had at an opponent in a futile effort was not an enviable position but such was the nature of their profession.
Satsuki narrowed her eyes in annoyance at the Sannin's taunting but maintained her calm knowing that to give in to her anger here was almost a guaranteed death sentence. Her fingers clutched at a new batch of shuriken tightly as she used her enhanced vision to seek even the smallest opening, the tomoe within her eyes spinning wildly in response to her anxiousness.
Around them, the smell of burning foliage and damp earth permeated the air, a direct result of their combined attacks. The once pristine cleaning was now littered with dark ash from her flames and broken branches now littered the ground from her teammate's unyielding assault with wind and water.
In spite of their best efforts, their opponent remained unphased, not even a single hair out of place even as the trees around him groaned in agony at the punishment they'd suffered in his stead. All the while he maintained his sickening gaze upon her, her clear sight having made her more than conscious of his roaming slit eyes.
She fought to keep herself from shivering violently at his unwanted attention.
Naruto clicked his teeth in open irritation at their lack of success, it was obvious to even the most casual observer that the snake Sannin wasn't taking them seriously but to see such a gap in skill first hand was more nerve-wracking than he was willing to show. The jovial and cordial manner in which he addressed them did little to distract from the unflinching truth that at any moment he could very well break them apart on a whim.
The harsh reality of their situation was as clear as day… the only reason they were only still alive was that the snake sannin simply hadn't deemed their lives worth taking at the moment.
The only logical choice was to run, they were alone in this forest as far as they knew and he very much doubted anyone else taking part in these exams would be any help against one of the most notorious missing-nin to ever walk the earth. Calling for backup would likely be a crapshoot since even if he could get a message to the proctors or the Hokage what were the odds they would make in time?…
The real question was, how did you escape from someone who was stronger, faster, and far more experienced than you were? More to the point even if they escaped what chance did they have of remaining hidden?
"That's quite the face you're making their Naruto-kun, would you care to share your thoughts with the class?" Orochimaru asked, his ever unsettling smile still etched upon his pale face. "I've heard you can be rather insightful when the situation calls for it and I can't help but find myself curious."
"It's nothing you need to know about." He rebutted not at all interested in sharing his rather dismal take on their situation. He wouldn't give him the satisfaction.
"Very well, keep your secrets." Orochimaru sighed before at once vanishing before their eyes and appearing suddenly within their blind spot. "I'll pry them out of you eventually regardless."
Naruto screamed as a pale fist buried itself into his stomach before choking on a second scream as he was elbowed viciously into the earth his face impacting harshly with the ground as mind-numbing pain exploded through him. Orochimaru's stoic face looking down upon him with little more than slight exasperation before he was forced to block a roundhouse kick from an enraged Uchiha, her face settled into a hateful sneer.
"You bastard!"
"So protective" Orochimaru smirked. "How interesting..."
He ducked under a second kick before sweeping her legs out from under her and lashing out with his own kick. Her arms managed to just barely guard her chest against his attack but the impact still sent her flying back but her balance was broken and she was left to roll across the floor for a few moments before finally managing to stop herself.
Placing his foot upon the now retching boy at his feet he sent a look towards the trembling heiress. He admired her resolve to continue this little dance of theirs, she had that famous "Uchiha Pride" he'd seen in her kin during his time here… though it seems she had other priorities as well.
"I've had the pleasure of meeting your brother Satsuki-chan and I must say… you don't remind me much of him." He watched as an expression of fury overtook her features at the mention of her older brother but he paid it no mind. "You lack the same focus I saw within him, the talent is there but you've yet to bring it out."
He smiled.
"I could help you. After all, do you think Itachi has grown stagnant in his time out of this miserable little village? No, his type goes on to gather the strength to etch their names into the very bones of this earth and yet here you are trodding along at your own pace while the gap between you two grows ever larger."
"Shut the hell up!" She growled. "I don't need any help, least of yours to kill him!"
"Don't hide from the truth Satsuki-chan, it does you no favors." He sent the enrage heiress an almost pitiful smile that only served to fuel the fire of anger within her. "You know in your heart that if you fought Itachi as you are now you'd lose." He began to walk slowly towards her. "This village… it was powerless to stop someone of his level, how can you obtain the strength to surpass him here?" He asked.
"You desire power, you value strength… I can offer you power beyond anything you could obtain within these walls." He extended an open hand in invitation. "Those eyes of yours and my knowledge… what a frightening combination we could make."
She spat at him.
"I don't want anything to do with you or whatever power you claim to have." She answered coldly drawing more of her chakra out. "I'll fight Itachi on my own terms and no one else's."
"Such perfect eyes and yet still so blind to reality…" He sighed but let out a slight chuckle. "Let's see if you change your tune after getting a small taste of what I can offer you."
Her eyes widened in disgust and shock as his neck twisted and stretched far beyond human proportions before shooting forward like a bullet towards her, his jaw open wide with longer than average canines bared. Instinctually she hurled her shuriken at his approaching head but it did little to phase him as Orochimaru merely swiveled in his snake-like fashion to avoid the hailstorm of metal.
She didn't have enough space to dodge!
Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!
Orochimaru choked as his main body was sent flying and by extension he was too, his fanged teeth mere inches away from his intended target before he was thrown violently away by the gale forces. Naruto's panting form sat off to the side, his chest rising and falling rapidly from the hastily formed jutsu but the satisfied smirk on his face was enough to convey his satisfaction before he brought his hands together forming yet another seal.
Tajū Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!
The clearing was swiftly filled to the brim with copies of the blond, so many that they couldn't all fit within the confines of their battleground. Copies of her teammates hung from the branches practically tripping over each other for the smallest bit of space.
"CHARGE!"
She didn't know which one made the call but she was soon treated to the sight of a stampeding horde of clones charging in the direction of the thrown Sannin. Their faces set into a sea of snarls and grim determination as the marched on towards their almost certain death with all the bullish bravado of any disposable soldier.
"Come on we need to go!"
She was snapped out of her trance by the rough and desperate grip of what she could only assume was the real Naruto dragging her in the opposite direction of the dog piling clones. She shook off her surprise and spared one last glance towards the wall of bodies separating them from their hunter before allowing herself to be pulled along, the rapid beating of her own heart drowned out by the shouting as the pair of them created as much distance between them and the clearing.
Naruto grit his teeth as flashes of memory began to assault him, the annoyed scowl of one pale snake Sannin searing itself into his mind as clones were massacred left and right, their final moments relayed to him like pictures. They needed to get as far as possible and he silently cursed himself for not offering to teach the Uchiha the shunshin no jutsu. The sound of popping clones and distressed shouts of panic grew further and further as they booked it, it didn't matter where they went so long as it was away from that man.
They needed to find Sakura and get a hold of someone, anyone who could handle the monster that had infiltrated these exams.
Recalling the memories of the squad of clones he'd sent with the pinkette he quickly approximated her position, no doubt she'd moved since then but that was their only lead and they weren't going to leave her behind. Summoning another batch of clones to cover their tracks he also sent a smaller batch out towards the forest entrance, the proctors and the Hokage needed to know what was going on and each second was a small chance of success.
Satsuki frowned as the gravity of the situation at hand settled uncomfortably upon her. The realization that they were essentially trapped in hostile territory with one of the most dangerous criminals in the world was a blow to her confidence that wasn't easily overcome. Unconsciously her fists clenched at her sides at the all too familiar and unwanted feelings of fear and helplessness gripped her. How many times would she be left at the mercy of others?...
-Back in the Clearing-
Orochimaru frowned as he dispatched yet another batch of copies near effortlessly. He would begrudgingly admit he'd grown a bit complacent in his taunting but it didn't make this distraction any less of an annoyance. It was a shame he couldn't make the Uzumaki a vessel, the chakra capacity alone would be a boon towards his ambitions coupled with their high life force and sturdy bodies the child was near perfect. Alas, it was in his best interest to leave the boy alone, at least until he was more confident about securing his own safety.
For now, the Uchiha would do just fine.
Fire Style: Burning Plains!
A superheated torrent of flames washed over the clones dispelling all within his path in the tidal wave of fire. What clones did manage to escape were quickly cut down by the now moving Sannin who barely stopped to glance over his handiwork in favor of staring off in the direction of multiple chakra signatures moving in tandem.
"Clever Naruto-kun… very clever."
It was a unique experience seeing a child make use of one of the village's most prized and dangerous techniques in such a liberal fashion. Even he could not make so many disposable clones without consequence but to the jinchuriki such a task might as well have been as easy as breathing. If left to develop at his current pace he would become a force to be reckoned with even without his tenant.
However, these were his old stomping grounds and it would take more than a few dozen clones to deprive him of his goals.
Breaking the skin of his thumb he quickly flashed through hand seals before slamming his palms along the ground, complex arrays of seals spreading forth from his palms as he completed the contract required for this technique.
"Kukuku, let the hunt begin again."
A chorus of hissing accompanied his laughter as scores of serpents slithered madly into the jungle before them all with one goal in mind. Find the children and bring them back to their master.
-With Naruto and Satsuki-
He winced as the memory of an all-consuming fire slammed into him, the cries of his clones smothered out by the roaring flames before the feedback cut out telling him all he needed to know about the fate of his copies. More importantly, that meant Orochimaru was no doubt back on the move.
"We need to find Sakura fast, that bastard's done with all my clones." He warned sending a worried glance towards Satsuki. "I don't think he's the type to give up from such a minor setback either."
"Did you figure that out before or after we set him on fire?" She snarked but her frustration wasn't directed at him but rather their situation and that was just how she dealt with stress. "What about that group of clones you sent for backup? Are they still okay?"
"I haven't received any memories from them so, for now, I think it's safe to assume they are still making their way toward the gates. So long as they don't get interrupted by another team we may be able to at least warn the village." He answered back.
"And what about us?" She asked quietly. "What are we supposed to do exactly? Sit on our hands and hope to kami that freak doesn't pop out of every bush or shadow?" She saw the untamed desire in that thing's eyes when he looked at them, he wasn't going to take this game of cat and mouse lightly and every fiber of her being quietly dreaded a second encounter with the missing-nin.
"Right now we are currently heading deeper into the forest, we already have both scrolls all we need to do is make it to the center tower and we won't have to sit out here anymore." He explained. "Odds are the main tower is being overseen by a few jounin or chunin meaning Orochimaru will probably try and avoid getting too close."
If he went through all the trouble of disguising himself as a participant than perhaps he would back off if they were in a populated area. Of course, there was the niggling knowledge that the snake could more than likely defeat any opponent barring perhaps the Third himself but he would not entertain those thoughts right now.
They had enough to worry about without the extra layer of paranoia.
"She should be around… here…."
The pair's eyes widened in shock at the bloody sight that greeted them as they stepped into the clearing that marked the last known location of their third teammate. The surroundings told of brutal battle with knocked over trees, broken and trampled branches, and cracked earth that jutted up sharply from the ground spiderweb-like cracks left imprinted on its surface.
"What the fuck."
Satsuki's vulgar if not inappropriate exclamation of shock shook him from his own stupor at the sight. Immediately fear and slight panic set in as his mind turned towards the worst possible outcomes, Sakura had clearly been here and more than likely had fought off something judging by the craters littering the ground but there was no clear sign of her or whatever had attacked her.
"Don't you worry about her... I made sure to keep her occupied, kukuku..."
Orochimaru's earlier words rang through his mind sending a growing numbness through him as he was reminded that even Sakura hadn't been spared from the Sannin's games. There was far too much blood here to have come from the small girl but that wasn't to say none of it could be hers…
"Oh thank Kami!"
Those fears were immediately put to rest as a bloody but more importantly still alive Sakura walked out from the bushes nearby, her red dress caked in spots of dried blood that stained her form and they could see hastily wiped smears of crimson on her usually pale cheeks indicating that more than just her clothing had gotten spattered. Green eyes sparkled with relief and joy at the sight of her teammates and it took everything she had not to rush over and embrace them.
"Sakura, you look…. Nice?" For all the stress she was feeling the odd sight of their most normal teammate covered in blood managed to take some of the edge off if only because of how out of place it seemed.
"Are you okay?!" He asked as they moved to inspect the pinkette who merely let out an exhausted sigh in response and nodded.
"I'm fine, other than being attacked by a snake the size of a small house I'm great!" She gave a shaky smile that hinted she was much more rattled than she let on but they were relieved to see that she was for the most part unharmed. "More importantly what the hell happened to you two?!"
They'd been in almost pristine condition when they'd parted ways but with just a passing glance she could see the exhaustion plaguing the pair, their clothing was dirty and scuffed and she could detect the telltale smell of ash that clung to them. What the hell had happened while she was fighting?
"We'll explain on the way but we need to go right now, forget camping out we are going to straight to the tower." Satsuki answered making her way to the other edge of the clearing, they couldn't afford to waste their time here.
Sakura clearly had questions but seeing the grave look on their face knew that now wasn't the time and nodded.
"Okay, but can I at least get a power wash or something first, this is really nasty..."
Despite himself he couldn't help but chuckle at the pleading look she shot his way and admitted they probably had time for that at least. She had earned that much.
…
Anko sighed in content as she propped her feet up on desk located within her tent. She wasn't a fan of having to camp out outside of the testing area but at the very least she could just relax and best of all she had a legion of chunin at her beck and call which she had made good use of to fetch every desire.
Example being the steaming hot skewers of dango sitting on her lap at the moment.
"What I wouldn't give to get permission to go in and mess with a few of those little brats, bet I could get at least of few to piss themselves before the end of the test." She mused as munched away at her snack absentmindedly. "Then again this year has some decent talent so maybe not…"
She had caught sight of nearly every major clan heir participating in this year's event which was almost unprecedented. A few had stuck out to her due to her own history with the clans or their instructors.
The most obvious being her lovely Nai-chan's team, her best friend had naturally forbidden her from meeting with the little gakis before now but she still knew about them. Shino Aburame was practically a clone of his father and somehow managed to show even less emotion if that was even possible, according to Kurenai he was talented but he needed to work on his communication skills as was typical of shinobi from the Aburame clan.
Hinata Hyuuga, heiress to the Hyuuga clan.
The pale-eyed princess was undoubtedly Nai-chan's favorite doubling as both a shining example of what she believed a kunoichi should be as well as a little sister figure. The girl was polite but didn't possess the Hyuuga clan's famed rigidity which made her rather popular among her peers. She also apparently nursed quite an affection for a certain blond gaki much to her amusement knowing that her little show had probably miffed the girl quite a bit.
She might have to make that a habit if only to see how red a Hyuuga could get if pushed far enough.
Then there was the Kira Inuzuka, heiress to the Inuzuka clan by virtue of her older sister rejecting the title. She was actually on friendly terms with both Hana and Tsume but she'd never met the youngest Inuzuka until this morning. According to Kurenai, the girl was brash beyond belief but at least possessed the skill to back it up, she was fiercely loyal and spoke whatever was on her mind regardless of circumstance.
A girl after her own heart, maybe she would introduce herself sometime… if she was anything like her older sister than they would get along just fine.
As for the rest of the genin, she knew a little bit about each but there were some standouts. Asuma's team was just the next generation of the famed Ino-Shika-Cho trio which was a bit boring in her mind but that was just her opinion. Asuma did speak fondly of his team quite often amidst his complaints about their various quirks. He was particularly fond of Shikaku's daughter praising her frightening intelligence though he did wish that she would apply herself more.
Ino Yamanaka was a name she'd heard plenty from her father Inoichi since they often worked closely on cases. He had nothing but positive things to say about his "little angel" so she took his words with a grain of salt. She didn't seem like the type that would pick up her father's work when he eventually retired or passed on but she would reserve her judgment since she didn't really know the girl.
Choji seemed like a typical Akimichi, gentle but food-obsessed. Asuma liked the boy well enough but mentioned that he currently lacked any real drive that would push him to really bring out his best.
She and Gai weren't exactly close so she knew next to nothing about his team other than they apparently oozed "the springtime of youth", whatever the fuck that meant. She knew he had an uppity Hyuuga, a decent kunoichi, and a clone of himself that the Hokage had apparently not saw fit to ban from occurring.
Looks like the next generation was doomed to deal with that horrid jumpsuit as well.
Lastly, there was that baka Kakashi's team, home to her special little brat and the last loyal Uchiha. Kakashi didn't speak much about his team other than they were more than capable of handling themselves and that he had high hopes for them. From what she'd heard the last heiress was a loner at heart but given what had happened to the girl she couldn't exactly blame her for not wanting to make friends.
The pink one, Sakura? Apparently, the girl was civilian born which she could respect seeing as she herself wasn't a clan child and knew that being placed with the village superstar and pariah likely wasn't helpful to her own self-image but the girl seemed to be doing well which was surprising given Kakashi's lack of experience teaching. He was strong but he didn't really know how to explain things, his natural talent having coasted him through the basics and the needs of war preventing him from building his own social skills.
Then there was Konoha's own little demon, Naruto Uzumaki. She snorted at the thought of the brat being compared to the monster that had rampaged through their village all those years ago but then again she knew first hand that people could be stupid. If they thought he was a monster she could set them straight and point them in the direction of a real one.
See how long their ignorant jeering lasted in front of that sick bastard.
"Excuse me! Is anyone here?!"
Anko blinked at the familiar voice calling outside of her tent, she knew that if you spoke of the devil he would appear but this was a bit much…
Quickly getting to her feet she made her way out of the tent and sure enough, the topic of her thoughts was standing just outside of her tent. His whiskered face set into a worried frown while she could easily catch sight of his chest heaving beneath his hoodie as though he'd run all the way here at full clip.
"Gaki? I didn't expect you of all people to give up." She was a bit disappointed to see that he'd apparently thrown in the towel. Leaving the forest was considered forfeiting by all rights and she would admit she had been looking forward to seeing if he'd make chunin or not.
"I'm not the original I'm a clone." He explained and she could hear the panic in his voice as he spoke, setting her on edge. "Boss sent me to warn the village!"
"Warn us about what?" She pressed. Regardless of her feelings towards the villagers themselves, she had a duty to take all threats to its safety seriously and she very much doubted the boy in front of her would risk his own promotion with a false alarm.
"Orochimaru has infiltrated the village and is currently hunting us down, we are making our way towards the tower but we have no doubt he's in pursuit." The copy explained and she felt her blood run cold while the normally dull pain in her neck began to throb angrily at the mere mention of the man that ruined her life.
"Are you sure?!" She hissed.
"Seeing as he took the time to introduce himself yeah, I'm pretty damn sure!" The clone scowled, there was no time to play twenty questions. "We managed to escape by sheer luck but he seems fixated on us for some reason."
Her mind went into overdrive as she considered why her traitorous sensei would be interested in a bunch of genin before she remembered who made up the exact members of Team Seven. The village's Jinchuruki and the only other pair of sharingan eyes left in the world that didn't belong to a mass murder and she was pretty sure she could hazard a safe guess at which her old mentor was after.
"Fuck fuck fuck!" She hissed as she turned grabbed a headset sitting on her desk. "All available personnel be warned, Orochimaru has infiltrated the exams! Repeat, Orochimaru has infiltrated the exams!" She shouted into the comms getting the word out to her squad.
She turned to the clone and took him by the shoulders. "Run and tell the Hokage, he needs to know about this right now and pay attention to this, this is important." She hissed. "Do not let him bite you, or the Uchiha! I don't care what you have to do but do not under any circumstances allow that to happen!"
She pushed him before he could respond and in a swirl of leaves, she had vanished. Her only goal getting to those kids before that bastard could. She'd be damned if she would allow the opportunity to end that man slip through her fingers.
This was going to end today!
-Hokage Tower-
"I see… so my old student has returned."
Hiruzen felt the full brunt of his age hit him as the copy of the blond relayed his urgent message. It had taken him mere moments to put together his student's motivations. For all of Orochimaru's complexity, he was still single-minded in his goals and that made him predictable in some respects. Orochimaru was never content with his knowledge or his strength always seeking more of both, in his youth that had proved more than adequate to propel him beyond his peers but later in life, it had twisted his star pupil into an unfeeling monster.
Now he was after the sharingan, the lynchpin of all his dreams. The ability to understand any jutsu with just a glance, copy it and make it his own. It was all he'd ever wanted, rolled into one convenient package just waiting for him to swoop in and take it.
"Forgive me, it seems my mistakes have caused you more trouble than I could have anticipated." He stood from his desk and discarded his kage robes in favor of his wartime armor. "I only ask that you hold out for a little longer Naruto-kun."
"I'll do my best but please try and hurry, I don't think he'll give us a second chance to escape." The clone urged before dispelling, its memories already on their way to the original.
"Let us hope I can say the same."
-Back with Team Seven-
"You can't be serious?!"
Sakura felt dread as she was finally filled in on the details of her teammates' encounter with Orochimaru. She, of course, knew who the man was as Naruto had introduced her to the wonders of Bingo books but that brought her no comfort now as she was made painfully aware of how out of their depth they were.
"I wish we were kidding." He grimaced. "But there was no mistaking it and if you were really attacked by a giant snake that all but confirms that it's him. There are no other holders to the snake contract to my knowledge, least of all in these exams."
Why was it always them…
His eyes widened as the memories of two sets of clones hit him and he let a small smile grace his face. Satsuki caught the grin and she felt a small flutter of hope hit her, there was only one reason he could possibly be smiling right now.
"Please tell me you have good news." She pushed not wanting to be left in the dark right now, they desperately needed some positivity right now.
"I do." He confirmed. "Backup is on the way, the proctor of the exam and teams of chunin are making their way into the forest as we speak right." He relayed but his grin widened at the last memory that hit him. "Better yet, the Hokage himself is on his way to help handle this, we just need to hold out for a bit longer."
Sakura couldn't stop a shining smile from making its way onto her face while Satsuki smirked in a mixture of satisfaction and relief. They may not have been home free just yet but they were getting close they just needed to keep moving.
True to their word they had forgone making any sort of camp in favor of doing their best to make it out of this alive, they were tired but the alternative was more than enough motivation to push on through the darkness. Satsuki's enhanced eyesight allowing them to traverse with only minor issues, it wasn't as good as having a Hyuuga but it was better than nothing.
They'd keep up the same pace for at least an hour as they trekked through the shadows. Of course, they didn't want to attract attention to themselves by sprinting wildly through the forest but sacrifices had to be made with such a serious threat. They'd already resolved to run from any encounters with hostile teams, all that mattered was reaching the safety of the tower.
Sssssssssss….
Sakura frowned as an uncomfortably familiar hiss made its way to her ears from the underbrush, the hairs on her arms standing on end as she was reminded of a creature she was currently doing her best to forget.
She wasn't the only one who seemed to have caught the noise either, up ahead her raven-haired teammate had paused forcing the whole group to stop behind her.
"You heard that?" Sakura asked.
"I heard something..." She admitted red eyes scanned the forest anxiously. "But I'm really hoping I heard it wrong."
"Let's not stick around to find out what you two heard." He interrupted not liking how they'd stopped moving. "We have to be close to the tower by now let's get there first and then we can sit and talk about whatever we want."
"Right/Sorry."
Satsuki took her place at the front and the trio pushed forward once more.
-With Anko-
"Where are you…"
She let out a tense breath as leaped from branch to branch through her personal stomping ground but for the first time in years, she didn't feel the sense of peace that normally accompanied her time within it. Her mind raged with painful memories, ones that refused to stay buried and only further fueled the hatred she felt towards the source of her pain.
It had been years since he'd abandoned her but it felt like only days had passed since she'd hung onto his every word and in turn, he'd repaid her devotion by using her as some kind of guinea pig before throwing her away like yesterday's trash…
The consequences of her involvement didn't end with a new tattoo and a fucked up chakra network either. Her involvement with Orochimaru had tainted her reputation within the village, she could count on her hands the number of her fellow shinobi who probably didn't think she was a flight risk and that didn't hold a candle to the number of civilians who openly called her the second coming of Orochimaru.
She was never free of his presence and it drove her mad.
But the chance to change that had finally presented itself and she was going to make sure he wouldn't leave this forest alive. Even if she had to die to do it…
Her eyes scoured her surroundings looking for even the slightest leaf or twig out of place that might clue her in. She practically lived here outside of missions and she would be damned if he managed to evade her in her own sanctuary. Amber orbs narrowed in suspicion as she suddenly caught sight of odd, winding grooves in the earth. Too shallow and perfect to be a person.
But a snake…
She blasted forward, he was close! He had to be and she wasn't going to let him ruin another life if she could help it!
-With Team Seven-
"Sakura duck!"
Sakura didn't hesitate when the order came, folding her body just in time for a pair of striking fangs to glide harmlessly past the top of her head before a hiss of pain erupted from the now impaled snake that had planned to strike her neck. Its writing brown body convulsing as it tried to free itself from the blade driven mercilessly through its jaws before finally slacking as it resigned itself to its fate.
"We've got company!" Satsuki hissed quickly drawing more shuriken as more hissing serpents of every size scrambled out of the underbrush, some coiling their powerful forms around the thick tree trunks while they slithered up towards the team. Others fell from the treetops opting for kamikaze strikes with fangs bared while their faster brothers rushed along the branches to swarm the trio.
It was an assault from all sides and they were caught right in the middle!
Sakura growled quickly popped a soldier pill into her mouth, her exhausted reserves swiftly refilling as the bitter concoction worked its magic. Channeling her new burst of chakra to her hands she felt the familiar tingle that accompanied the Iron Shell technique and lashed out with a series of punches to the falling serpents. Their fangs shattering like glass on her tough skin while she batted them away as quickly as she could.
Naruto wasted no time in evening out the numbers with another round of clones, the newly summoned army charging in with kunai drawn as they hacked and slashed at the larger snakes making their way up the trees knowing that should they would be a major distraction if they managed to reach them. Meanwhile, he set to work washing away anything that managed to get past his clones with well-placed jets of water.
Satsuki blurred into movement moving through the air while flinging hailstorms of kunai and shuriken at anything that strayed into her sight. The predictive ability of her sharingan allowing her to predict incoming bites and react accordingly, those she couldn't hit she hypnotized quickly dulling their senses and leaving them open for her team to clean up.
Like a well-oiled machine the trio didn't stop moving even as the ground below them swarmed in a writhing mass of tentacles and teeth. There was no space for error and there was no time for doubt, each simply had to trust the others would hold their end of the tide back as best they could.
Earth Style: Shattering Strike!
Sakura fell to the ground with a loud crash, her fist cratering the earth below as the shockwave of her attack ruptured the ground sending wriggling bodies flying back. Naruto and Satuski wasted no time and appeared on either side of their third teammate, chests bulged out in preparation.
Combination Technique: Blistering Springs!
Roaring flames heated torrential waters in a wide spray of scalding hot water and steam, those snakes unlucky enough to meet the attack head-on screeched in agony as their skin quickly began to flake away, heat hot enough to scald but not kill instantly prolonging their suffering and sending them scurrying back as they tried vainly to soothe the intense pain. Even those on the fringes of the flash flood found themselves hindered as the steam and intense moisture sent their senses haywire, the superheated air and moisture making it near impossible to track their targets while steam obscured their vision.
The once organized assault quickly fell to chaos, a chaos Team Seven used to their advantage to bolt once more towards the tower. Leaving in their wake the charred bodies of their victims who were none the wiser…
All but one who continued the pursuit uncaring of its struggling brethren.
…
"He has an army of snakes?!" Sakura cried as they booked it deeper into the forest, the sound of hissing disappearing into the darkness behind them. "How is that even allowed, who the hell keeps an army of snakes?!"
"He is the snake sannin." Satsuki huffed trying her best to push past the exhaustion plaguing her at the moment. Despite her reserves increasing dramatically over the months she wasn't a walking chakra factory and the repeated use of her jutsu and sharingan were taking their toll.
By her side Naruto found he wasn't faring much better, the multitude of clones, wind and water jutsu, and his own rather liberal chakra enchantments were leaving him feeling lower than he had in a long time. He wasn't out by any means but he was starting to see the bottom of the barrel so to speak.
"How much further do you think the tower is?" She asked wondering just how much longer they would need to run like this. The Moon was already high in the sky and she wasn't sure if they could keep up the pace if they were just going to be ambushed like before. She wasn't suited to fighting that many opponents and she could see both her teammates running on fumes.
They had one, maybe two more fights in them at most.
"It can't be that much farther…" He sighed, he should have sent scouts out for this but that was the joy of hindsight. "More importantly where the hell are the proctors?" It had been more than long enough that they should have been here by now!
"The forest is pretty big, that's a lot of ground to cover." Sakura supplied but that didn't make any of them feel any better about their current situation. "We could try signaling them but that would make us easy to find for him as well." She suggested.
"Assuming he doesn't already know where we are." He pointed out. "If those are his summons than its possible that the moment they found us so did he." He wasn't naive enough to believe the man would send out a horde of his summons just to kill them. Not when he'd had the opportunity before and judging by the information Anko had relayed it was obvious the sannin wanted something specific from them.
"Is that possible?" Sakura asked, their knowledge of summons was limited and there wasn't exactly anyone they could ask right now.
"I wouldn't rule it out." He admitted. "We saw him literally wear another person as a skin suit so at this point I am willing to believe anything."
"Do you want to risk it then?" Satsuki asked finally offering her own two cents. "We don't know enough to make the right choice but we don't have the luxury of doing nothing either." She frowned and crossed her arms sending a look towards the blond. "If you are right then we're going to have to fight regardless."
Is this what being a leader was like? Was this something that people actively sought, to hold other people's lives in their hands?...
"Whatever you decide we're with you." Sakura said offering a supportive look. Satsuki nodded and gave a half-smirk of reassurance offering him some measure of comfort. He sighed reached into his pouch, retrieving a bundle of flash tags and explosive notes that could be used to signal their position.
"There is no walking back from this…" He warned.
They nodded and he surged his chakra through two of the tags before with a grunt he flung them high into the air, far past the treetops.
BANG! BANG!
The air above lit up with light and fire as the twin tags burned up in the atmosphere, marking their position for anyone in the nearby vicinity be it friend or foe. The choice was made and there was nothing to be done about it now…
"That was a poor choice Naruto-kun…"
The trio flinched as almost immediately the ramifications of their actions came to haunt them. From the shadows they watched with trepidation as a single white snake slithered lazily into the clearing, its tongue tasting the air as its slit golden eyes glared at them with almost murderous intent. The voice of the snake sannin passing through its parted lips sending almost tangible malic through the air as it looked at them.
"Had you simply continued on as you were we could have dragged this little game out…" The jaws of the snake stretched wide and to their horror, a single slime covered hand shot out of the creature's body, the length of which should have made it impossible.
"You had to make this difficult." A second arm shot out and slowly the twisted form of Orochimaru came into sight, a frown marring his pale features as he wiggled out of the confines of the serpent's stomach. "And now I can't afford to play with you anymore."
"That's sick…" Satsuki felt bile rise to her throat at the sight, barely forcing it down before it could escape but the feeling of disgust wasn't quelled in the slightest.
"So squeamish, this village is as soft as ever." He shook his head and stepped forward. "It's no wonder this was so easy, my dear Sensei never did have the spine to make real change… but this is neither the time or the place for that conversation."
Killing intent flooded the clearing and visions of agonizing death assaulted the trio of genin as Orochimaru drew closer. "Now be good little children and listen to your elders." He snarled his facade of patience long gone.
"F-Fuck you!" Gripping the last of his explosive tags he ignited them and hurled the primed kunai at the approaching Sannin. The blast rocked the area and pushed the three of them back as smoke enveloped their vision, it was foolish to hope that he would be delayed by such a tactic but the gloves were off and they would take any opportunity.
"You are testing my restraint now."
From the smoke, a single pink fleshy whip-like appendage ripped through the smoke like a bullet before wrapping tightly around Naruto's wrist. He didn't even have time to scream as he was abruptly yanked forward into the dissipating smoke screen. His teams panicked shouting lost in the rush of air that accompanied his journey into the waiting fist of the Sannin.
Star bleed into his vision as pain erupted in his jaw as the Sannin beat him mercilessly, a savage blow to his gut forced blood and spittle from his open mouth before his head snapped to the side as he was viciously backhanded. Orochimaru wasn't finished however and finished his assault by slamming the boy into the earth relishing in the shout of agony that accompanied the cracking earth below.
He was petty but he could afford to be such a thing at this moment.
Sakura and Satsuki sprung forward unwilling to watch any further, attacking from both sides in hopes of boxing the Sannin in. Those plans were met with equally brutal retaliation by the aggravated Sannin grabbing the pinkette by the heel he violently whipped her into her other teammates sending the two flying back in a tangle of limbs.
In the corner of his eye, Orochimaru witnessed the blond struggling to his feet and a flash of indignation shot through him. The image of a stubborn redhead and her foolish husband running through his mind, he drew one of the kunai he'd pilfered from their earlier skirmish and kicked the still down blond onto his back, a wheeze of pain escaping his lips as he glared defiantly through blurry eyes at the sick gleaming yellow orbs.
"I may not kill you today but that does not mean you will leave here without a gift of your own." Orochimaru spoke cruelly launching the kunai with the slightest flick of his wrist into the blond's stomach, the metal carving through flesh easily as the blade buried itself to the hilt inside of him.
"GAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!"
"Naruto!" Satsuki screamed out in horror at the inhuman shout of pain that escaped the blond, his form convulsing on the floor as Orochimaru put further pressure on the wound by placing his foot on the still embedded weapon. A twisted smile on his face as the thorn in his side suffered at his feet.
There were worse fates than death.
"GET OFF OF HIM!"
Orochimaru was forced to back off as the Uchiha Heiress fell upon him, her face contorted into a mask of hate and rage so genuine that he almost found himself taken aback by the sight. Her attacks were precise but were back by such intense ferocity that he had to pay at least some attention to avoid her stikes, she wasn't a threat by any means but he was seeing the depths of her ability, her limits…
"What's wrong Satsuki-chan? Are you upset I hurt your little friend?" He taunted blocking her strikes while pushing her back. "Or is there more to it?" He mused remembering her earlier protectiveness of the jinchuriki. He had written it off as mere comradery but the Uchiha rarely felt so strongly for those not of their own blood, just what was he to her?
He could hazard a few guesses and the prospects intrigued him greatly but would have to explore those another time.
"You bastard!" She kicked off his arm and immediately flew through hand sign before the area in front of her was bathed in a stream of fire, Orochimaru's lanky form being caught directly in the line of the flames. The heat of her fire scorched the earth in seconds as she refused to relent until she was sure everything before her was nothing but ashes.
"Tsk, how rude."
Satsuki choked as pale fingers burst from the earth and fastened themselves around her neck cutting her jutsu off as he windpipe was slowly crushed. Orochimaru's gaze twinkling with amusement as she struggled pitifully in his grip, her ruby eyes glaring at him with all the fury she could muster as he slowly squeezed the life out of her.
"You really are nothing like him." He said and the slight widening of her eyes told him that she knew exactly who he was referring to. "As you are now you'll never compare to the heights he's reached, but I am willing to aid you, to mold you into something that even he could not imagine." With every word he spoke his canines grew ever so slightly, his teeth resembling the fangs of the serpents he commanded.
"Let me give you a taste of what I can offer you!"
…
Drip… drip… drip…
Naruto groaned as he struggled to his feet, the low light of his surroundings stinging at his eyes as he oriented himself. The water beneath his feet rippling softly as he stumbled to his feet, the sight of iron bars and darkened halls appearing in his vision as he slowly realized where he was.
"Kyuubi…"
Glowing red eyes peered down at him with hate and annoyance, the deep rumbling breath of the beast he remembered rattled his chest and he was given a reminder of the disparity in their size. The towering gate that divided them doing little to reassure him that those gates would not suddenly fly open at any moment leaving him at the mercy of the creature sealed within him.
"Insect… you've grown slightly." The beast mocked never taking his eyes off the child staring back at him. "And you've landed yourself in trouble once again." It spoke in a tone reminiscent of a condescending parent, one that had simply been waiting for the chance to be proven correct in their assertions.
"Naturally." He gave a grin not willing to allow the beast to get to him, he'd been through too much today to deal with this crap. "Have any thoughts on how to get out of this?" He posed more to himself than the creature but at this point, he was out of options and would take what he could get.
"Tear that seal off and I promise you that serpent will be the smallest of your problems." The beast growled offering another tooth-filled smile that sent shivers down his spine, how the Fourth had faced down such a hateful creature was beyond him but he couldn't afford to run with tail tucked.
"Maybe some other time." He retorted causing the fox to scoff, an action that sent heavy winds slamming into his face but thankfully he managed to hold his footing. "So I take it you don't want to help me out?"
"What I want is my freedom, anything else is secondary but in my current state your death would be nothing but an unacceptable hindrance." The fox stared at him with boredom as if even being angry was too much effort to waste on him. "However, that man has made it clear he won't kill you so I see no reason to offer my assistance."
"Tsk, fine if you won't help then at least get me out of here so I can do something." He growled, if the fox was just going to waste his time then he'd rather wake up and make himself useful.
"And what exactly will you do?" The fox sent a bemused smirk his way as though the lives of his teammates weren't in mortal danger at the moment. "You already know that you will lose regardless so why bother, at least with you down I don't have to dedicate any more of my energy to healing your weak body."
He glared up at the beast resisting the urge to yell at the haughty creature.
"Maybe I can't do much but I'm not a coward." He glared unflinchingly into the chilling ruby orbs as he stared down the most powerful creature alive with nary a twitch. "If you don't want to help then fine, but you have no right to stand in my way."
"No right…" The fox slammed a paw in a move that sent tremors through the entire complex that made up his mind. "I am here against my will, my power is what keeps you from dying when you decide to play hero with your pitiful strength! Such ignorance… If I could I'd feed upon your bone marrow for such a comment!"
"Well, you can't so tough." He snarked beyond caring for the fox's temper tantrum. "Either help me or stay out of my way but I'm not going to hide!"
The fox snarled and the air around them burned with hatred as the shadows shifted and the water below began to boil as red tendrils of malicious energy slowly crawled out from the cage towards the blond who unconsciously took a step back from the bubbling crimson energy that now sought him out.
"You want my help? Fine, let's see how you handle this but don't expect me to take responsibility for what you do with it." The fox laughed cruelly as the tendrils shot forward and swallowed the blond in their embrace, his shouting soon silenced as he was cocooned the raw, hate-filled power of the Nine-Tails.
"Let this be a lesson, be careful what you wish for brat!"
…
"RAGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH!"
Orochimaru paused as a wave of crimson light burst off the downed body of the blond he'd left in the dirt. He could practically taste the hatred and malice that filled the air, an unconscious chill running down his spine as dark arcs of vermillion buffeted the surrounding area leaving deep rivets and groves in the once smooth earth. The feeling of death that accompanied such foul power would no doubt be more than enough to send turn a lesser man into a sobbing mess. However, Orochimaru was no lesser man and he merely smirked at such an interesting turn of events.
So the fox wishes to play… it's a shame that I am out of time.
His scouts informed him that his old mentor and student would be here soon and he couldn't afford to deal with an enraged jinchuriki and his teacher at the same. He would have to make his escape while he still could.
"Forgive me for having to cut this short my dear." He smiled at the still struggling girl in his grasp who was torn between fighting him off and looking at the slowly rising form of her teammate. "We will meet again I'm sure." With that he quickly sunk his teeth into her neck, his fangs piercing her skin with ease as he injected the enzymes needed for his mark while also infusing his chakra to apply the seal. He ignored her screams as he watched three black tomoe marks fade into existence where he'd bitten her, showing that his mark had taken.
"RAHHHHHHHHH!"
Another pulse of demonic chakra swept over them and unseen to even Orochimaru his new prey's mark flashed a deep red, then purple, before fading back to black, the tomoe spreading out ever so slightly that even if he had noticed he would not have had the time to investigate.
"Orochimaru stop right there!"
He turned and smirked at the sight of his old student arriving on the scene, her face falling into a horrified expression as she caught sight of the Uchiha in his arms and the now fully upright and snarling jinchuriki. Oh, how fate had the best timing, if only his old mentor was just a tad bit faster than this would be perfect!
"I think Naruto-kun a little upset so I'll leave him in your care, as well as my newest investment." He chuckled dropping the now convulsing body of the Uchiha to the ground in a heap, her hands clutching her neck while her eyes fluttered in agony. "Farewell, Anko-chan~" His smile never left his face as he dissolved into a puddle of mud the moment Anko's snakes bit into his dissolving body leaving her with a frightened pinkette, a comatose Uchiha, and very pissed off jinchuriki. A jinchuriki with a single swinging tail behind him and bloodlust in his crimson eyes.
…
"Fuck my life."
AN. Chapter Complete!
So… here we are and I'm not going to waste any time because I am still sick as a dog while I write this lol.
Let's start with the main thing I need to address since this was a big point for a lot of people and yet here it is bold and unapologetic. Satsuki and her receiving the curse mark:
I got a lot of people on my case about not doing this specific thing for a wide variety of reasons so many might be upset or feeling that they were ignored or some other variation of anger at this specific choice. I want to be clear that this wasn't done because I wanted to ignore those people who were vocal, quite the opposite I am actually happy that people hold strong opinions on this because it shows investment so please don't assume that I just ignore you all.
There were two really core arguments I saw against Satsuki receiving the Curse Mark. The first being that "if you give her the mark you are going to ruin her character."
While I am glad people are worried about her character, I do think it's a bit silly that people think I would go through all the trouble of making Satsuki more likable and thoughtful to allow one moment to undo all that time and effort. I have said I want to improve characters and I don't plan to then undo all her development. I will add depth but I do not have any plans to reduce her to pure angst by any means. I can't talk in-depth because of spoilers but this is not really something to be worried about in my opinion.
The second argument was "If you give her the mark that means the story is going to follow canon and isn't going to have an identity of its own, just retreading the same ground we've seen before."
This argument I can understand given that I've followed canon up to here with my own adjustments obviously but I can see where people would be worried. That said, I can only ask that you take my word that I have plans for this, it's easy for people to make assumptions since the only way I can 100% counter them is to reveal things that spoil the story so I just ask that people trust I have much more original content planned that will shift the story and the world.
If you don't believe me and have confidence that the two issues above are going to come to pass regardless then by all means you are free to abandon the story as I don't want people to read this with a preemptively negative mindset. I want people to come in with a sense of curiosity and excitement and if this pushes you away from that and into a "Just wait for him to mess it up" mindset then I think there are better ways to spend that time.
This is not a dig at people who really just want to see this story become something but remember that anything past what has been written is just speculation and assumption and that I DO read everything and pay attention to what you have to say!
There is also the fairly obvious hint that Satsuki's curse mark application didn't go as perfectly as Orochimaru expected so keep that in mind.
The rest is pretty self-explanatory, so I'll only touch on two more things here. Those being the fate of Lemons for this fic and the Poll for Tayuya Vs. Samui:
For the fate of lemons, the answer is that YES there will be lemons in this fic. You all were pretty vocal about your stance on that so that settles it, no take backs lol. As I said before all the previous rules still apply as such lemons won't appear until Shippuden to mitigate complaints about age and such. They won't become intrusive and as always no romance is going to be rushed just for a lemon so hopefully, this satisfies everyone, if there are any questions you can ask me directly through PM or in reviews where I'll try and answer them by messaging you.
Next up, the Poll:
Firstly, thank you for actually participating in the poll! It means a lot that you all actually decided to vote and I just have to say I appreciate it, it makes me more confident about using polls going into the future.
Anyway, I am not here to reveal the winner yet, I want to give it more time since there is no rush right now. I will say however that the results are actually much closer than I was expecting (as of me looking before this goes up). SO IF YOU ARE SOMEONE WHO HAS STRONG FEELINGS BUT HASN'T VOTED YOU BETTER DO IT SO YOU DON'T MAD LATER!
I won't say who's leading through, I don't want to skew it so just vote for who you want. I like both and both have strong things they can add. Samui has the whole foreign relationship angle on top of being a pairing not seen often outside of smut. Tayuya has the whole mysterious past/bad girl angle to go for that makes her a popular choice as well so no wrong answers!
I hope you enjoyed the chapter and I wish you all a Happy New Year! (As I said I am sick so forgive any glaring issues, I will try and clean up anything major when I can even though I think I caught most of the big stuff)