"Sasori you need to let me cle—"
"Get away from me!" Sasori growled, swatting his fretting mother away. The action aggravated the pain he was still feeling run through his body. He winced, clenching his teeth hard. He had been holed up in his parents' house since Orochimaru's charming visit. He had not been able to move much since and it infuriated him.
"You can't do this on your own," she scoffed.
"I don't need—"
"You barely made it out of there alive," his father cut him off. "You have no choice but to let her help you."
Sasori gave his father a hard look. He could not argue with that. He just did not want to admit to it. He looked at his mother and his face softened. "Fine," he sighed.
"Thank you," she sighed. "Do you think you can get up for a proper bath?" she asked him gently. She had been giving him sponge baths since being submerged was too painful. It was...not the highest point in his life.
"Yes, I think I can manage," he grunted, starting to shift his body towards the edge of the bed so he could get up. About halfway up, pain shot through his body and he let out a soft wheeze. His mother stepped closer, ready to catch him if he fell. Sasori moved slowly as he swung his legs over the edge of the bed and stood up. With his mother very close behind him, he started moved, very slowly, to the bathroom.
Sasori's father walked ahead of them, setting up the bath with herbs to help with his cuts and testing the water to make sure it was not too hot. His mother gently helped him undress before handing him off to his father who helped ease him into the water. Sasori was hating every single second of this baby treatment. He needed to heal fast to he could find Azumi. If she thought that her father was going to keep him at bay forever she was in for so much more than a rude awakening. He ground his teeth as the water washed over his wounds. He settled into the tub with a pained hiss.
Once he was situated, his mother brought over a towel and set it down next to him. "I'll let you soak for a few minutes and then I'll come and help you wash up," she told him.
"No, I got it," he said, leaning against the wall of the tub. He let out a soft sigh as some of the wounds started to ease.
His mother pulled back, glancing at her husband. Her brows were pulled in tightly with worry but he gave her a soft smile. "Go," he mouthed to his wife with a gentle smile.
She sighed again, looking down at her son. "Alright. I'll go prepare dinner then," she sighed once more.
Sasori closed his eyes, rolling them behind his lips. He understood that she cared but she was overbearing. He did not need to be smothered. He needed to plot! After a few seconds, Sasori could still feel his father's presence. "You can go too," he said without opening his eyes. "I don't need to be babysat."
His father looked up as he shook his foot out of his pants. "I'm not babysitting you," he chuckled. "I'm joining you." He circled the tub to get in on the opposite side.
"Father, seriously?" Sasori sighed, on the verge of sobbing.
"Yes, Sasori," he said, settling in on his side, "seriously. This is my house and you are my son."
Sasori stayed quiet for a long moment before letting out a groan. "I just wanted to be alone," he muttered.
"I can't trust you to be alone in the tub. You might drown."
"I'm hurt, Father, not dying!" Sasori whined. He ran his hands down his face then pushed them up through his hair.
His father sighed, smirking a little as he looked at his son. "But you were dying," he reminded him airily. Sasori groaned again, resting his head against the arm he flopped down on the edge of the tub. His father smiled slightly. "I'll take your mother out for a bit after we eat and you can have your alone time," he assured his son.
Sasori sighed and sunk a little lower in the tub. "Fine," he relented. Suddenly, he wanted to rush his bath and hurry up and eat so he could finally be alone.
His father stared at him for a moment longer. "So..." he started, "how are you going to get her back?"
Sasori blinked at his father for a moment. It was not really a surprise to him that his father assumed he was going to plot to get her back. "I need her alone. She knows she is mine. She won't resist me."
"She might not but her father will. And your cousin. Neither of them seemed eager to play your game, Sasori."
"Which is why I need her alone," Sasori hissed. "She wouldn't dare fight back against me alone."
"You can't bank on her not resisting you," he said. "Especially since her father is here. But...I'm going to trust that you can figure it out. You know her better than I do."
"I can be very persuasive with her," Sasori smirked. He closed his eyes, thinking of what he wanted to do to her once he got her back. First and foremost, the baby had to go. He was not going to deal with all of those emotions and hormones. Secondly, he was considering keeping her chained down to certain rooms. He trusted her—or at least he had trusted her—not to run. However, he did not trust others to not steal her away.
His father hummed softly and nodded before he started to wash himself up. "You'll have to take care of her family as well," he said. He did not mean in a hospitable way and he was sure Sasori knew that. "That will solve the bulk of your problems."
"Thank you, Father, for this wise suggestion," he said sarcastically. He smirked slightly, watching his father roll his eyes.
His father narrowed his eyes, leaning across the tub to poke his son hard in the shoulder. "When did you become such a brat?" he smiled a little. It melted quickly, though, into a look of concern.
"Don't look at me like that," Sasori's own smirk faded. "I can handle them."
His father said nothing but nodded. It was not that he did not believe in Sasori but he saw just how brutal Orochimaru was and he feared losing his son. "Right," he said. He finished washing himself up and stepped out of the bath just as his wife came back into the bathroom.
"Dinner is ready," she told them both.
"What did you make, my love?" he asked, wrapping a towel around his hips. He guided his wife out of the room, leaving Sasori a moment to himself.
Sasori sighed, sinking even further into the water. He heard his mother answer his father from his room. He was not truly alone but this was decent enough for now. He needed to figure out where Azumi was and just how he wanted to lure her away. He took a few more moments to wash himself up before slowly lifting himself out of the tub. The pain in his body had soothed a little but moving was still hard for him. Yet, he still refused to ask for help from his parents. After a minute of struggling, he was finally out of the bath. He wrapped his towel around his waist and moved to the next room to get dressed. Putting clothes on proved to be harder than he wanted to admit but eventually, he was able to do it. With a heavy sigh, he ran his hand through his hair and went to the kitchen to meet his parents for dinner.
"It really took him twenty minutes," his mother sighed the second he walked in the room. His father chuckled softly, trying his best to stifle it.
Sasori frowned, squinting at his parents. "Were you timing me?" His lips pinched.
"Yes," his father smirked. "Your mother was concerned that you couldn't handle it yet and I said you could do it but it would take you about twenty minutes."
Sasori's face fell blank. He started at his parents vacantly. "I see," he hummed, taking his seat.
"Oh, don't be that way," his mother frowned, taking his hand with the continued look of concern for him on her face. It was really starting to annoy him.
He gently retracted his hand from her. "I don't need to be treated like some helpless child," he told them as he started eating. He could not stress that to them enough and it seemed like they were going to continue to baby him. His mother sighed heavily but started to eat her own dinner. Her husband pulled her, thankfully, into some conversation, leaving Sasori to his own thoughts. He downed the meal faster than he expected himself to. He stood up slowly, using the table for support. "I'm going to my room," he told his parents.
His mother began to protest but his father spoke up first. "Alright, son." He squeezed his wife's hand. "Ring the bell if you need anything."
He nodded and then headed back to his room. He immediately went to the desk, not wanting to lay down just yet. He did not want to struggle to get out of the bed and he sure as hell did not want to ask for help. Sitting was an easier position to get up from. He sighed and ran his hand through his hair, formulating a plan to figure out where she was and how to get to her. He had a feeling she was still at Sandaime's house. However, getting in there unnoticed would be nearly impossible.
Her father was the main and major obstacle he had to overcome. He drummed his fingers on the wood of the desk. He could try to sneak into his uncle's house or even send Komushi in to distract but he could not guarantee it would lure Orochimaru away. He also had to consider where his irritating little cousin would be. Gaara being with her was annoying but he could deal with it if he had to. He growled softly, deep in this throat. Then the idea struck him. He knew just how to deal with her father. He just needed to get a messenger bird.
With a small grunt, he braced himself against the desk and slowly stood up. He just needed to make it to the aviary at the back of his parents' house. He started to move out of the room, holding onto the walls as he moved through the halls. A few servants gave him worried looks, ready to ask if he needed any assistance but he brushed off their presence, not bothering to even glance at them. He heard his parents walking down another hallway, on their way to the front of the house. He let out a small sigh of relief that his father kept his word on taking his mother out so he could be alone. It was a long and slowly walk to the aviary but he finally made it. He leaned against the wall for a moment, trying to ignore the pain in his body. He could feel his body running hot then cold, threatening to break out in a cold sweat if he kept pushing himself. He took several deep breaths before opening his eyes again. He scanned the aviary for the fastest bird his parents had. One came walking up to him, fluttering its wings a little to land on his shoulder. He winced hard.
"You're still alive?" he asked, semi-shocked to see that particular bird. "Hold old are you at this point, Beetle?" The bird tilted its head and ruffled its feathers a little. Sasori shook his head. The bird was probably deaf. "Where is Yen?" he mumbled. He caught sight of the large brown bird across the room. He whistled at the bird, catching her attention. She made a small noise before flying toward him very quickly. Realizing, it would hurt a lot if she landed on him, he tried to move out of the way and get her to land on something else. However, in his state, he could not move fast enough and she landed on his other shoulder. He let out a grunt, biting back the pain as he motioned for the bird to land on the table he was moving towards.
Yen obediently hopped from his shoulder to the table. Beetle, on the other hand, leaned in to nuzzle Sasori's cheek. Sasori sighed and he gently lifted the bird from his shoulder to place him next to Yen. He then reached for the paper pad near the table and wrote out his message before attaching it to Yen's leg.
"Find Kakuzu," he instructed her. He gave her a treat from the bin on the other end of the table. She made a little noise, took the treat and then was gone. Beetle watched Yen leave and then looked at Sasori, also wanting a treat. "You're not going anywhere," Sasori sighed. Beetle made a noise and moved closer, leaning his head down to turn Sasori's hand over, hoping there was a treat ready for him. Sasori pursed his lips, already feeling sort of guilty. He was going to say no again and just leave but the bird made a mournful sound at the empty hand and he gave in. He reached over for a treat, leaving it on the table for the elderly bird as he left. "I'm such a sucker," he grumbled to himself.
He made his way back to his room, once again ignoring the servants he saw in the halls. He pushed himself too much by the time he made it back to the room and sat down at the desk again and continued to form his plan while he waited. He put his head down on the desk as he thought. Closing his eyes for what felt like a moment, he suddenly heard someone shift behind him.
"We coulda killed you," a snarky voice pulled Sasori from his unintended nap. He recognized that the slave's voice instantly.
"Kakuzu," Sasori said roughly. He rubbed his face then looked at the larger, looming man and his impish slave sitting on the edge of his bed.
"Your letter sounded urgent," Kakuzu mused. He looked around the room, taking in the fact that they were not in Sasori's own home. "You're alone here?"
"For now, yes," Sasori straightened up as he spoke. "I need a favor." He looked at the hitman dead in the eyes.
"You will still have to pay," Kakuzu reminded him in a deep rumble.
"I assumed so and I'm prepared for that," Sasori folded his arms over his chest.
"But I will cut you a deal. Who are they?" He leaned onto his knees.
Sasori nodded his thanks then turned to grab the sheet he had been working on. "Here, this has all the data I could gather on him. His name is Orochimaru and he is the father of my slave. I need him disposed of as fast as possible."
Kakuzu took the sheet from Sasori, reading it over.
"Ya wanna kill your slave's father?" Hidan gave him a confused look. "How did he even find her?"
"I don't know how he found her," Sasori answered. "But he did and now I need to get rid of him."
"As fast as possible, huh?" Kakuzu hummed. "You know where he is?"
"He's most likely at my uncle's house. Sandaime is housing her and her family like some sort of sanctuary."
"Your slave is there, too?"
Sasori nodded. "If you see her, leave her alive. She's pregnant and I'm going to deal with that on my own."
"And the rest of her family?" Kakuzu raised his eyebrow.
Sasori pressed his lips in thought for a moment. "Do whatever you want," he finally said.
Hidan nearly jumped through the ceiling with a howl of excitement. "Can I have them?" he asked his master with shining eyes.
"Fine, but don't make a mess," Kakuzu warned the younger man.
"But the messier it is, the more fun," Hidan whined, only to be met with a hard look from Kakuzu. "Fine," he sighed. "I'll be clean about it."
"Gaara is also with them," Sasori added. "Obviously, leave him alive as well."
Kakuzu nodded. "Will do." He scanned the paper one more time. "Is that all?"
"That's all," Sasori confirmed. "Contact me how you want when it's done to collect your payment." He felt a giddy skip in his chest. If they pulled this hit off—and Kakuzu was one of the best in the underground—a massive obstacle would be removed. The two men stood up and without any further conversation, Kakuzu left. Hidan hastily bowed to Sasori then followed after his master.
Sasori leaned back in his seat, sighing heavily. He covered his eyes with one of his arms, grinning as he tilted his head back. This was it. Get rid of the old snake, steal back Azumi and he would be set. He considered for a moment what he should do about his cousin. He could disable him. It was not like his siblings would not care for him. And he did not really need his legs. He caught himself chuckling softly and for a few moments, he felt no pain in his body. He sighed a little and moved to get up so he could get in bed and rest a bit more. He soon fell back asleep, content enough to finally relax.
When he came to again, he was acutely aware someone was in bed with him and probably watching him. He took a deep breath. He recognized the scent and even the weight of the person next to him. "What do you want, Komushi?" Sasori grumbled without opening his eyes.
"Well, you're my best friend," he started. "So it's my duty to come to check in on you."
"It really isn't," he sighed, rolling on to his side, away from the other man.
"Aw, don't be like that," Komushi chuckled, gently pulling Sasori onto his back and then immediately retracting his hand when he heard the pained hiss from him. "I almost died for you."
Sasori scoffed, finally opening his eyes to see how bandaged and damaged Komushi just was. It hit him hard—harder, then he was willing to admit out loud. He eased himself up onto his elbows to rest on the pillows. "You're very dramatic," he said softly.
"I wish I was being dramatic," Komushi grinned. "But I really did almost die. That guy is no joke."
"Well, we won't have to worry about him anymore," Sasori said. "I put a hit on him. Kakuzu is going to take care of it."
Komushi's brows furrowed and he hummed softly. "Are you sure Kakuzu can handle that guy?" he asked, genuinely concerned.
Sasori looked at him, slightly puzzled. "He's the best at his job. Why wouldn't he be able to?"
"That guy turns into a snake. A really big snake."
Sasori opened his mouth to contest Komushi's entirely made up and ludicrous statement. But then he remembered just who they were talking about. Azumi had fangs and a venom sac. It would not be all that strange to find out they could turn into snakes. "Regardless," Sasori waved off both Komushi and the sinking feeling in his gut, "I have faith in Kakuzu."
"Normally I would, too," Komushi frowned. "But he tried to swallow me, Sasori. The guy doesn't hold back for his kid!"
"Swallow you?" Sasori hummed. "Just how big was this snake?"
"His head touched the ceiling of your workshop."
"Ah, yes, that's pretty big."
"I don't think Kakuzu will be ready for that," Komushi frowned. "And if he takes Hidan with him, Hidan is for sure going to get eaten."
"Please." Sasori scoffed. "If he didn't swallow you then he won't swallow Hidan."
"You're right," Komushi chuckled. He shifted very slowly to match Sasori on the pillows. "I taste way better than Hidan could ever hope to."
"You'd both taste like trash," Sasori rolled his eyes. "Moving on, once her father is out of the way the baby is next."
Komushi frowned. "You're still going to kill the child?"
"Of course," Sasori answered. "I don't care what my parents want, I'm not raising it with her and I don't want to deal with her pregnancy problems."
"Why don't you just give it to me?" Komushi half-joked.
"If you're going to start fighting for that zygote's life you can leave right now," Sasori snapped.
Komushi sighed, laughing a little through twinges of pain. "Fine, fine," he chuckled. "And how are you going to deal with Gaara?"
"We cripple him," Sasori said simply. "Killing him would cause too much trouble. And this is already enough to deal with," he sighed.
"Ooooh," Komushi's grin shifted to something much darker. "Any ideas?"
"Probably break his legs," Sasori hummed. He was going to shrug but at the first twitch of his shoulder, he felt a spike of pain. "I can still use him like that."
"Leave that to me then," Komushi smirked. "If Kakuzu and Hidan take care of her family, I'll take care of Gaara and you go after the little snake."
"In that case," Sasori smirked. "It's all falling into place. I'll give it until tomorrow night before we hear back from Kakuzu and then I have my property again."
"So you'll have her again," Komushi hummed, "but how are you going to keep her this time? What if she tries to leave after she's tasted this little bit of false freedom?"
"That will be the fun part," Sasori grinned, looking at his nails. "I'll break her down. She will have nowhere to go but me once her family is dead and her lover is a cripple."
"That's true but...she won't be the same after the baby," Komushi brought up.
"Drugs will work just fine on her. And I'll enjoy reconditioning her anyway." He looked up from his hand. "I went far too easy on her this past year. She needs to learn who her master really is."
"I guess with Kakuzu involved this plan will go much smoother than the last one," Komushi chuckled.
"Let's not talk about that," Sasori interjected. "We're still healing."
"Right." He closed his eyes and sighed.
"Your injuries can't be that bad if you made it here," Sasori hummed. He had a hard time just moving from the desk to the bed. He could not imagine making the journey through the city that Komushi had to make to get to his parents' house.
"I was carried," Komushi chuckled. "The walk from the front door to this room though..." he trailed off, closing his eyes.
"You're an idiot," Sasori rolled his eyes. "What did you even come out here for?"
"I already told you!"
"You really don't have a duty," Sasori sighed, rolling his eyes again.
"I honestly didn't want to be stuck in my house alone," Komushi grunted. "They wouldn't stop fussing over me. It was just too much."
"It's no better here," Sasori rolled his eyes. "My parents are treating me like a helpless child. It was a miracle that my father agreed to take my mother out for a bit so I could finally be alone."
Komushi grimaced, glancing at the doorway. "How is your father?" he asked. "He got hurt, too, right?"
"Not nearly as bad as us," Sasori huffed. "He's fine. And we'll be fine, too. My mother just needs to relax."
"Well, if your parents went out then hopefully your father will fulfill some husbandly duties."
Sasori's grimace deepened. "There are things I don't ever need to picture," he muttered, "and that is one of them."
"I regret nothing," Komushi chuckled. "But if we plan on doing this by tomorrow, we need to hurry up and heal."
"I'll be fine by tomorrow," Sasori half-lied. He knew he would definitely be able to move around much easier but he also knew it would not be without some pain.
"Good for you," Komushi smirked. "But I'm going to need a little extra help."
"I figured," Sasori rolled his eyes. "I have my pain killers in the bathroom."
"Perfect," Komushi grinned. "Then I will be completely at your disposal."
"You're never not at my disposal," Sasori sighed. He relaxed more against the bed. "Go take those pills. I'm going back to sleep."
Komushi chuckled softly as he moved to get up and go into the bathroom. "I'll just stay since I'm already here," he smirked, not wanting to even think about having to head back home in his physical state.
"There is a guest room down the hall!" Sasori called to him. "Go there."
"I can't make that walk," Komushi pouted. "We won't touch each other in this bed anyway."
Sasori groaned loudly, burying his face in the pillow. He could never win with Komushi. Komushi grinned, knowing he won as he knocked back the pills. He settled into bed next to Sasori who was already dozing off. The two men slipped off to sleep quickly.