Chapter 25: Broken Trust. Broken Heart
A/N: I do not own the Naruto Franchise!
I do however own Mari Kaede and any other OCs mentioned.
Warnings: Contains dark themes, such as depression, murder, experimentation, emotional, mental and physical torture, possible attempted suicide and mentions of sexual activities!
Hey guys, here's the important twenty-fifth chapter for you to enjoy! I am so terrified since it's such an important chapter, I wanted it to be just right. It feels too short to me, but I didn't want to drag out the detail and ruin the most important part of the chapter.
I hope you enjoy!
The time had come...
Kaede stood at the end of the corridor leading to Orochimaru's room, her back pressed against the wall as she peered towards the bedroom door, waiting for her target to make his move. Two days had passed since she had come up with her plan, and she made sure she was fully rested so she was ready for a possible fight in case this strategy didn't go quite like she hoped it would.
The woman ceased all sounds and movement when she saw a foot cross the threshold of the door, and her target, Kabuto, emerged from his lord's room. The hidden redhead watched as he walked in the opposite direction towards his lab and she took the longer route to get there, so she wouldn't be caught. The white-haired medic stepped into the room filled with experiments, and his many vials of poisons, medicine, and specimens, while Kaede stayed hidden out of sight behind the doorframe.
She stood there in silence, watching his every move as he wandered around the laboratory, mixing chemicals and going about his daily business. When she was one hundred percent sure he hadn't sensed her and he had his back facing her as he prepared Orochimaru's medicine, she dove forward and caught him by surprise as she wrapped her arm tightly around his neck and grabbed his other arm, keeping it pinned behind him.
The medic made a choking noise as Kaede shushed him and kept a tight hold as he tried to struggle free. Without both hands to form jutsu, he couldn't Shunshin his way out of her grip, and without any oxygen going to his lungs, his strength quickly faded away, making it impossible to pull her arm free from his windpipe. The woman waited until he lost consciousness, sagging in her grip before she dropped him, letting him hit the ground hard with a malicious smirk.
"That's what y'get for all the shit y'put me through~" She sneered venomously as she stepped over the unconscious shinobi and went into the cabinet she knew held the most potent poisons. 'I need a poison that hurts and take a long time t'kill someone off...' She read each of the vials with quick succession until she found the bottle she wanted, which held a deep green liquid, bordering on black, that looked just as bad as the label suggested.
She let out a devious laugh and held it tight in her hand, letting her long sleeves fall to cover her arms completely, hiding the bottle from sight. Never had she been gladder to love overly long sleeves. With a silent nod, she spun around and left the lab, swiftly traversing the corridors until she reached Orochimaru's room, where she stopped to peek inside and check on her victim's status.
Orochimaru was sat up in his bed, head hung forward as he felt pain radiate through him, causing him to cry out in agony and rage. The former Sunagakure kunoichi narrowed her eyes and continued on her way, making sure to move fast enough that any normal person wouldn't see her with their head down. However, the man she despised was not an ordinary person, he heard her footsteps, despite her purposely leaving her sandals in her room, as they made too much noise, and quickly jerked his head up to see a shock of red hair pass the doorframe and head towards the kitchen.
Something was off...
Kaede soon reached her destination, still silent as she watched one of Orochimaru's subordinates cook up some soup to restore the Sannin's strength. Just like with Kabuto, she dove forward and wrapped an arm tightly around the man's neck. When he went to yell, the woman mercilessly dragged him back before she let go and cut his throat wide open. She didn't even watch him fall to the ground, drowning in his own blood as she moved to the prepared meal, staring at the contents with unwavering resolve.
This was it, if she poured the contents of the vial into this soup, he would be killed, and she would finally achieve her revenge.
She tasted the soup before she even thought about opening the poison, she needed it to taste good so he would drink as much as he could so when the chemical kicked in, he would burn. Once she was certain it had been prepared correctly, she pulled up her sleeve and yanked the cork off the bottle with a pop. Her heart was actually pounding, a mix of fear and excitement settling in her gut as she stepped forward and held it out over the meal.
One twist of the wrist and it was all over.
However just as she started to tilt the bottle forward, a long pink organ shot out from the darkness and coiled around her wrist tight, keeping her arm in place as she made a sound of shock and spun her head around to see Orochimaru stood in the shadows, his yellow eyes glowing murderously in the dark. "What do you think you're doing?" He hissed venomously, easily able to speak around the tongue he controlled.
Though her expression started out as a glare with gritted teeth, her snarling lips curled into a dark grin as she met his gaze with very little fear in those brown orbs. "What does it look like I'm doing?" She snapped back, only to hiss in pain when her enemy tightened his grip, forcing her to drop the bottle, which rolled across the floor, staining the stone below with it's toxic contents.
"I had a feeling this would happen..." The Sannin continued, eyes narrowing with anger and disgust. "You've been acting strange for quite some time, so I took the liberty of observing you."
"How'd y'know what I was planning?" She asked, glaring at him, her back still turned towards him, as movement would lead to injury. "I ain't exactly been friendly with you 'til this point, what made y'suspect this?"
"Your behavior during the Chuunin Exams, one such as yourself wouldn't ask the person they hated most to train them. I have observed your actions for over a decade, you underestimated my knowledge." Kaede clicked her tongue when she remembered that day, just twenty-four hours before she killed Sarutobi. "Then there was the moment you observed Kabuto rather intently from behind the doorframe...I am not a fool, I asked Kabuto how your medical exam went, and he didn't recall giving you one since the fight with Tsunade-hime and Jiraiya."
Kaede's lips curled up into a hateful snarl, her eyes now showing all the vile emotions she held for the man, seeing no reason to hide it any longer. "I also saw you cross my room mere moments ago." Orochimaru continued, ignoring her expression, he didn't fear her in the slightest. "The way you moved, the speed you kept in order to avoid sight, that told me you were acting on your silly little idea and I quickly followed."
His smirk dropped then, his arrogance hidden away behind disappointment. "I had hoped your opinion of my village would change since the time of your release, so you would become an asset towards my goals...However, that doesn't seem to be the case." The vicious snake shinobi's eyes narrowed venomously. "I should kill you right now for your actions!"
Kaede was silent for a second before a dark, demented laugh left the depths of her throat, a rumble that didn't match the anger in her eyes as her lips warped into a grin, her teeth grinding together. Orochimaru's eyes widened with surprise as she turned in his grip, twisting her wrist the wrong way, ignoring the pain shooting up and down her arm.
"Go ahead." She growled, meeting his gaze with unwavering resolve and determination. "I ain't about t'preach forgiveness to a vile demon who ruined everything for me...I swore I would take your life, t'hear your last breath, even if it meant I would take mine! I was only playing nice t'get y'to trust me so I could get to this point...But play time's over." She stepped forward, her wrist bending at an angle that could not have been comfortable, but she merely winced and continued to stare right at him. "I was a promising Jounin who planned t'find a husband and have kids, live a normal, happy life for the sake of my village and my friends...But y'stupid experiments destroyed me! Y'made me into a monster, a freak of nature that ended up being labelled as a 'failure!'"
A pop was heard as she took another step, and her wrist dislocated, unable to strain further. She hissed in pain but refused to back down, nothing but seething rage and murderous desire reflecting in her cocoa brown eyes. Though he was furious with her actions, Orochimaru was amazed by how dangerous she could become when determined to see something through. He wanted to believe that her resolve could be used to aid his plans, but he knew that was no longer the case.
"I lost everything t'your greed!" Kaede hissed out, and with another motion, she got too close and Orochimaru's lips curled back into a snarl, fingers twitching with a desire to move, instinct demanding he put space between them, not out of fear, but to avoid injury. "Go on then, y'said y'were going t'kill me, right? Do it!" Though she said this, she faltered in her movements, a slight twinge of hesitation freezing her in place. A subconscious sense of knowing that she was no match for him, even as he was.
'No! I won't let this asshole control me anymore!' The redhead thought, getting in his face now. "Hurry up and try it, y'piece of shit!" She roared at him, spitting her words with uncensored emotion and a foolish sense of bravery.
That was the last straw for the Sannin, he hissed in anger and decided he would show her how much she underestimated his strength. Without giving her time to react, he slammed his forehead into her own, sending her stumbling back into the table while he retracted his tongue and took two steps back, his head throbbing with the attack.
Without the use of his arms, it was all he could do to put some space between them.
Kaede leaned against the table for a second, dazed from the sudden blow, she shook her head and regained her senses, before she shot her nemesis a slow grin. "That's more like it." She sneered, grabbing her wrist and pushing it back in place with a grunt of pain, before she straightened up and rolled her shoulders and neck, readying herself. "Now I can really let off some steam~!"
Orochimaru braced himself as she kicked off towards him and flexed her arm, a kunai falling down the sleeve into her formerly injured hand. She watched with satisfaction as he evaded a thrust of the sharp blade by a hair's breadth, but it was short lived as he flipped backward and kicked it out of her hand, forcing it into the air where it hit the ceiling with a 'thunk.' Her weapon was rendered useless as it stayed there, embedded in the stone.
She would have been annoyed, but she did not get much time to respond as she formed a cross with her arms and blocked as her opponent swung his foot down from the kick, using the momentum for power. Pain shot through her arms, but she didn't stop, instead, she pushed back and tried to hit him with a flurry of punches, her emotions amping up her reaction time and strength.
Once or twice she managed to land a hit, bruising his cheek and stomach. However she wasn't facing a Genin, Orochimaru avoided most of her attacks with ease. Using his feet as his fists, he kicked his way past her defenses and slammed his foot into her chin, sending her flying into the air. Even then she didn't stop, instead, she flipped mid-fall and landed on the table with an angry snarl and a bruised chin. "I ain't going t'let that stop me, y'Snake-Eyed Bastard!" She ground out, forming seals with quick succession, shooting a large fireball at the Sannin, who dove to the side to avoid it, the attack leaving a massive scorch mark in the wall where he once stood.
He didn't get much chance to counter as she appeared in his line of sight, grinning as she slammed her fist into his cheek and sent him hurtling back into the corner, where he sat, blood leaking from his lip. She went for another attack, but he snapped his head up to meet her gaze and she gasped, halting as a snake shot from his mouth to immobilize her. In the last second, she managed to replace herself with a large pot nearby, standing on the kitchen counter, holding the edge with irritation plastered across her features as she caught her breath and Orochimaru got to his feet.
He was surprised with her ability to keep up with him in a Taijutsu battle, even with his handicap. To think her determination had fueled her this much, had motivated her to the point where her training had increased her skills tremendously compared to their first sparring session. The thought alone had the Sannin's angered expression warping into a smirk of amusement.
He wasn't serious, of course, if he was, she would be struggling far more, but as far as he knew, she wasn't serious either. It was as if she was testing his limitations to find his weaknesses. 'How interesting...I wonder what other strengths she's hiding under those unpredictable personalities of her's~?"
"Are y'done already?" The former Suna kunoichi taunted as she used the ledge to kick off of, barrelling towards him with her fist pulled back. Orochimaru ducked to the side, just avoiding the sudden, fast blow, the two heading out into the hallway as their brawl continued. The limited space gave her little room to work with and she cursed as she tried to avoid his many attacks.
She dove up onto the ceiling and started forming seals for Katon: Hosenka no Jutsu, when she was forced to dive forward, landing behind the Sannin on the ground to avoid a kick to her cranium. Once she was on the same level, he turned to kick her, and she used that opening to lunge for him, slamming her shoulder hard into his stomach, sending him staggering back in pain.
With the opportunity, she spun around and ran down the corridors with Orochimaru chasing after her, keeping a decent distance from him using her Futon: Rendukan as a distraction. She finally escaped the hideout and they entered the wooded area around the underground network that served as their new battleground. Once in the open, she spun around and sent a fireball his way, which he ducked from as he ran, singeing his hair a little in the process, before he skidded to a halt in front of her and did a forward flip, using the momentum and her shock to slam the back of his foot into the top of her head. The impact pushed her down and she lost her footing, slipping and hitting her jaw off the ground without anything to cushion the blow.
She stayed frozen for a few seconds as her body processed the pain, but the moment she could, she swung her foot around to sweep his out from under him. It did work to an extent, he did slip. However, he used his long tongue to halt his fall as he wrapped it around the branch of a tall tree and swung himself around and onto said branch, hidden in the brush of leaves.
But Kaede wouldn't let that stop her as she formed some seals. "Futon: Daitoppa!" She inhaled deeply and spat a torrent of wind at the tree he was hidden in, cutting it apart from the outside, gashes engraving the once beautiful wood and leaves sliced in half from the Chakra inside the gust. Once they died down she watched as the Sannin dropped from the tree, landing on his feet with ease. He had a few cuts here and there, but was otherwise unharmed, straightening up and shooting her a murderous glare.
Then, without warning, he started sinking into the ground, and the redhead cursed, forming seals as quickly as she could, but he was too fast and melted away before she finished. 'Crap! Where'd he go?!' She thought as she looked around for him, keeping her senses keen.
Orochimaru used this to his advantage, and shot a snake out instead, which made little noise and caught her by surprise as it wrapped tightly around her neck from behind, choking her as she grabbed it's shiny body and attempted to remove it. While she did that, the Sannin dove from the tree and kicked her hard in the back, watching as she hit the ground hard and rolled into the same tree she had cut up trying to defeat him.
Unable to breathe, Kaede got to her knees and flexed her arm, grabbing another Kunai that fell from her sleeve, and used that to slice the snake's body open, freeing herself from its constriction. Orochimaru chuckled with amusement at the sight, she was starting to get serious, otherwise, she would not have brought such a dangerous blade so close to her neck in front of an enemy that could easily use it to his advantage.
Kaede stood up as she coughed hard, holding her bruised neck for a second before she spun around and lunged for him. The man merely ducked down and swept her feet out from under her, then used the speed of the fall to his advantage, thrusting his knee up and into her forehead.
She was flung backward and landed against the tree again, the back of her head slamming off the wooden surface. The continuous assault on her skull gave her a concussion, and despite feeling sick, dizzy and lacking balance, she still refused to stop. She clicked her tongue and struggled to get to her feet as her opponent gagged and lurched forward, a snake appearing from his throat, which then opened it's mouth and brought forth the Kusanagi blade.
"So y'want a sword fight, d'you?" She snapped, grabbing the kunai she had dropped after freeing herself. "Fine by me!" She and Orochimaru both ran at one another and traded blows with their blades, he was able to overpower her with ease and knock the kunai out of her hand, she had lost her edge with her newfound injuries.
The woman made a noise of aggravation and dove back to avoid the slicing attack he aimed at her stomach. He wasn't being serious, she could tell by the lack of fire in his eyes, his slow, deliberate actions that did not strike her as those of someone whose life was being threatened. He did not fight her the way he fought the other Sannin.
He was toying with her, she was nothing more than entertainment for him.
Anger rose within her and she ground her teeth, her skin taking on an orange glow as her emotions spiked and she felt her bitter hatred for him rise with intensity. She formed the seals for her fireball and shot it at him, watching as he dodged it like it was nothing and she sent another hurtling his way with quick succession.
He was caught by surprise and managed to avoid another two before she managed to hit him, burning through one of his legs as the flames caught him just before he completed his evasive maneuvers. The Sannin dropped to one knee with a sharp sound of pain and she felt a sickening satisfaction fill her, giving her the energy to keep fighting.
However, it was short lived as his agonizing sound turned to that of amusement, a dark chuckle as he lifted his head and looked at her with wide, manic eyes and a malicious grin on his lips. Even though he was serious in his attempt to evade her, even though she had managed to push him into a corner, he still laughed like she was nothing, like he could win in a heartbeat if he so desired.
He was alive and had only a few cuts and scrapes, and a scorched leg, while she had scuffs and scratches everywhere, blood leaking from her lip when she hit the ground, a severely bruised neck, an aching wrist and a severe concussion.
Not only that, but she was running low on Chakra from her excessive use of jutsu.
Her entire body tensed up with rage and she started breathing heavily through her gritted teeth, her skin cracking with sparks threatening to engulf her in the fire she hated so much. "Damn you..." She ground out as her shoulders shook, her hair covering her eyes from view. "DAMN YOU!"
She shot him a murderous look and ran at him, surprising him further when she began to circle him, forming the hand signs for her Katon: Kasai Suīpu. 'Hm, hm, what's this?' He mused silently, swallowing the sword with ease, intrigued by her actions. 'A new jutsu, perhaps?'
She blew fire behind her as she circled him a second time, and he just watched, wanting to see this new jutsu for himself. However when she skidded to a halt and grinned, moving her hands to create the signs for her Futon: Daitoppa, his eyes widened as he realized what she was going to do, and quickly attempted to escape.
However she moved faster than he did, exhaling her Futon onto the flames that flickered around him, the swirling winds caught the embers and the two combined, creating a vortex of scorching heat that shrank at the bottom like a tornado would. Kaede hopped back to avoid the large typhoon and then leaped into the air, landing on the roof of the hideout as she watched, listening to his anguished cries inside the blazing inferno with a gleeful smile.
"Katon: Taifū o Moyasu..." She said, breathless as she witnessed the flames die down along with the screams inside and Orochimaru's charred body hit the ground as the torrent released him. She dropped to a crouched position with her hands over her knees, trying to catch her breath as she looked up at the moon above, feeling free. "I win."
A sound below caught her attention.
She looked down and her blood ran cold as she watched Orochimaru's body twitch. Her eyes widened in horror as he lifted his head and another version of himself started squirming out of his mouth, he slowly got to his feet, covered in bile and slime as he finally shed his former casing, no longer injured apart from his cursed arms.
She shook as she got back to her feet, staring at him with her mouth agape. How could she forget that he could shed his skin and repair any damage he took using a fraction of his Chakra?!
She realized how little her attack had actually affected him and she snapped, clenching her fists so tight, she cut her skin with her nails and blood leaked down her thumb. Her sparking skin erupted into a ball of intense burning flames and she growled with each breath she took.
Orochimaru, who watched her spiral into manic rage, only just managed to get his sword out when she rushed him with a burning kunai in hand, the two pieces of metal clashed and fought to see which could break the other first. The Sannin caught her eyes, which were alight with insane anger and intense desire, she wanted him dead more than anything and the fact that he had taken her last blow, possibly her final blow, without injury had pushed her too far.
He chuckled, amused by her reaction and jumped back, only for her to follow. He ducked and dodged most of her crazed attacks with ease, but did get cut once or twice when her movements were so erratic they couldn't be read. He was also burned slightly when his body got too close to her's and he understood just how much more it affected others than it did her.
He felt blinding, white pain the moment the flames came near his skin, they didn't even have to touch him for the searing agony to connect with his nerves.
They traded blows several more times before Orochimaru gained the upper hand and slammed the sword upwards against the kunai, sending the short dagger flying into the air, getting wedged into a thick branch of the tree they had gotten close to. Flames surrounded them, Kaede's burning feet igniting the grass beneath it as her clothes and shoes melted into her flesh, forgetting them in the heat of the moment.
Despite losing her weapon, the woman refused to give up and tried to kick and punch her way to victory, but to no avail, the intense pain of the flames had already kicked in and her movements were losing their speed and strength. She had long passed her peak and was now just a burning ember waiting to fizzle out. When she tried to slam her fist into his nose, he dodged quickly and sliced her arm with his sword, cutting the nerves and rendering the limb useless as it flopped to her side.
He wasn't even trying anymore, and even she could see that as she looked over with blurring vision and saw nothing but disappointment and a slight sense of boredom in his snake-like eyes. This expression only fueled her rage and intensified the flames and she spun to slam her remaining fist into his face, but the world spun and she was forced to plant her feet down, her knuckles just shy of his face, his blade embedded deep into her arm, just so she could stay standing.
She was gasping for air, her lungs tight, every breath burning her from the inside, while her skin melted and peeled from the flames on the outside. "This...Can't be happening...!" She ground out, throat hoarse as her eyes lost focus and her expression started to soften from exhaustion and defeat.
She had very little Chakra left and no stamina, while he stood there with no visible injuries and still had enough energy to stand and fight, while she could barely keep conscious.
The difference in their abilities was too much, he was too powerful for her to defeat.
The Sannin watched with a serious frown as the fire in her eyes simmered and snuffed out, before they rolled back and she collapsed in front of him, her flames flickering out around her as she lost consciousness. He stared down at her as rushed footsteps approached, and Kabuto stopped amidst the flames, which were spreading across the greenery in the area.
"Orochimaru-sama!" The young medic started, looking around at everything that had taken place, and the injured form of their former ally on the ground. "What happened here? These flames, only Kaede could have caused such a dangerous wildfire!"
Orochimaru remained silent for a moment as the teen felt the heat against his neck, causing him to sweat slightly with discomfort. "Heal her and seal the exit to the hideout...Only those given a specific selection of signs may be permitted to leave." He looked up at his subordinate who shivered at the intense gleam in his eyes. He then stepped towards the boy and walked past him, his breathing slightly labored. "Then seal her within her room...She can no longer be trusted..."
Kabuto stared after Orochimaru and then down at the broken, burnt body of the woman he had disagreed with since day one. He then bowed to his leader and crouched down, ready to heal as much of her fatal injuries as his Chakra capacity would allow.
"Yes, Orochimaru-sama."
A/N: Please review, all comments help me become a better writer!
So what did you think? Kaede has finally lost her fire, will she be able to recover, or is she doomed to wallow in depression forever?
Find out, in the next few chapters.
Japanese = English
Sunagakure = Hidden Sand Village
Otogakure = Hidden Sound Village
Futon: Rendukan = Wind Release: Drilling Air Bullets
Futon: Daitoppa = Wind Release: Great Breakthrough
Katon: Hosenka no Jutsu = Fire Release: Phoenix Dragon Sage Technique
Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu = Katon: Great Fireball Technique
Katon: Kasai Suīpu = Fire Release: Fire Sweep
Katon: Taifū o Moyasu = Fire Release: Burning Typhoon
Shunshin no Jutsu = Body Flicker Technique
