Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
Bathing in Blood
24. The Slip
So mankind's enemy continued his crimes,
Killing as often as he could, coming
Alone, bloodthirsty and horrible.
-Beowulf
The scream cut through the still air with the abruptness of a knife, a flying javelin of pure anguish. Like the cry of some wounded wild beast, it was, although too steeped in emotion to be anything save human. It diffused through the shivering leaves with a vengeance, grudgingly fading away. Gaara relaxed from his fighting stance, unthinkingly glancing along the path of the sound.
"Probably some poor halfwit team being massacred," the Shuukaku muttered impatiently. "Ignore it. We've got someone else to kill." Obediently, Gaara surrendered his interest in whoever was suffering, so far away, and resolved to turn back to the matter at hand.
If only the 'matter at hand' would turn back to him...
Another scream ripped through the scars left by its brother, accompanied by a monstrous release of chakra. "I really pity whatever idiots had to feel that blow." The demon chuckled. "Well, actually, I don't, but you know what I mean...Now let's get back to the fight! We've gotta kill this little bitch and move on to more interesting prey!" And the sand poured forth in a cohesive wave, a blinding river of gold fit for a king.
And what a pity, that its target wasn't paying any attention...
Sakura stared, transfixed, in the direction of the twin shrieks' source. The same direction that she'd come from, when leaving her team. Green eyes narrowed, then widened as the wheels in her head turned faster and she made the connection.
...because didn't someone say something about needing all three teammates alive?
Orochimaru smiled lazily from his perch on the moss-covered branch. One small step for man; one large leap for mankind. Or something like that. Not that it could really be considered a 'small step', even for him—such a curse seal used up no small amount of chakra. It might take a few hours before he was back to his normal power again. But it was worth it. Oh, most definitely worth it.
"It's only a matter of time before Sasuke-kun comes to me," he crooned dreamily to himself. Indeed, his work was over here; it was only a matter of time—
"Is that so?" Like the other shoe that everybody has been waiting to see drop, a panting Anko lurched clumsily into his peaceful domain. The snake man's languid expression widened into a sadistic grin.
"Now what are you doing here?" he inquired, voice filled with feigned surprise that his face did not echo. "Out to stop me? No, no, I see that your job isn't what's on the line here. Let me think...revenge, perhaps? But for what...?"
Here a snicker, which would have sounded childish coming from anyone else. For him, it was a distinguishing mark, almost a form of verbal punctuation. And it served him well.
"What did I ever do to you, besides give you a cool curse seal and some cute tricks to go along with it?"
The proctor growled. She hated when he did this, treated her like some worthless pet, a mere toy. "Don't you play ignorant!" she slurred, trying her disoriented best to sound ferocious; forceful at the least. "You...you did things to me, that's what you 'did'! And then you lock up my memory!" Her pitiful whine rose to a hysterical high-pitched screech.
Like it or not, she was still being toyed with, still succumbing to the same influence she'd never been able to resist.
Orochimaru snorted. It was amusing when she acted so prudish, playing Little Miss Prim and making a fool of herself. Much more enjoyable. Much more fun. He simply had to reply. "Well, if you want to put it in such delicate terms, then, yes, I did 'do things to you'. All absolutely necessary things, though, you must understand. How unusually kind of me, too—sealing away those portions of your recollections."
And he had to wonder...how did they become unsealed...?
"Just imagine..." he continued, mindless of Anko's growing anger. Whatever she tried would be wasted effort on her part, regardless—that curse seal was quite the handy tool when it came to discipline. "...the unspeakable traumas you'd have had to go through if I hadn't. Hm?" Having said his piece, he neatly dodged Anko's kunai, returning once more to the uninterrupted fantasy world of his mind.
