(A/N: I couldn't wait to get this one out. I adore Orochimaru. Hope I didn't get nething wrong. And I love getting reviews on this stuff. Criticism is appreciated as long as it's not mean. I listen to complaints and usually end up fixing whatever it is I screwed up. And… yeah. So enjoy and please RnR!)
That night, Yukie didn't eat dinner. She hadn't even come out of her room after Tsunade's speech. Neji tried to get her to come out, but she didn't even talk to him. Often, Neji would come to her door and use his Byakugan to make sure she was still there.
Yukie lay on her bed, looking up at the ceiling. Why couldn't she remember? She remembered the phoenix demon, she remembered Talah, she remembered some of her bloodline jutsus, and she remembered there was more she didn't know. Apparently, Talah had been from the Sound. Orochimaru was from the Sound. His name sounded so familiar; she could almost see his face. Eventually Yukie fell asleep. Her dreams were full of snakes, demons, and people without faces. Words she had never heard before flew through her head: Manda, Otokage, Sharingan, "My Pet".
The next day, Yukie stayed in her room. She didn't eat or speak the whole time, she just tried to remember. As she stared at the ceiling, she noticed it seemed to be getting darker, but she didn't pay attention to it. She couldn't care less about the ceiling, it was just changing to match her mood; dark and horribly lost. Neji tried leaving food by her door, but that did nothing. She just ignored it. That night was also filled with mysteries Yukie couldn't answer. She couldn't figure anything out and none of her dreams made sense.
The morning after, Sakura banged on Yukie's door. "You have to come out," she said through the door, "I'm meeting the two other members of my team. Because you're the third member, you need to come, too."
Yukie opened the door and looked out at Sakura. Her eyes were bloodshot and, from what Sakura could see, the green coloring in her eyes had turned to black. Her skin was deathly pale, almost white, like she had been locked in her room for two decades, not two days. Sakura took in a sharp breath when she saw Yukie. But before she could say a word, Yukie spoke. Her voice was rough and strained, "I'm fine," she said, but the words didn't comfort her one bit.
Sakura nodded and led the way to the Ninja Academy. Yukie hadn't eaten in the past two days, but she told herself not to let her hunger get to her. The students were finishing with lunch, and the leaders were talking together. Sakura joined the group and introduced Yukie to them. Kurenai was a woman with black hair and red eyes (she had given the infant to Tsunade three days ago). She had only taught three years, but not in a row. There was also Asuma, a tough guy who taught his groups with a strong fist yet calm temper. Ebisu was going to be a rookie trainer, but had taught the honorable grandson of the Third Hokage a few years ago.
A girl Yukie had met before was also there, TenTen. Although TenTen wasn't going to be teaching this year, she had the year before. She was the person who had convinced Sakura to train, too, but had been placed into a team with Ino and Hinata for a mission. The mission had gone wonderfully and the three always worked together after that. They made up a Chuunin Squad, with TenTen as the Jounin leader.
The four leaders went into the Academy once the clock stuck one. TenTen left the leaders to their jobs. The students had been assigned team numbers, so each leader walked into the room one by one and collected their team members. Team numbers were assigned according to numbers open from previous Genin teams that separated. Asuma was team ten's leader, like always. Kurenai was team five's leader. Ebisu was team two's leader (with Konohamaru a member of his team). And Sakura was team seven's leader.
Sakura went in last and got the two other members of the team with Yukie behind her. "Before we make introductions, I suggest we go to my house; to make the environment more relaxed." She led the way to her house, with Yukie and the two others following her. A few minutes later, the four were settled comfortably in Sakura's living room. They went around the room and introduced themselves.
First was the girl on the left. "I'm Senji. I want to be a ninja because I think female ninjas don't get enough credit. I will prove that girls can be better ninjas than boys!"
The boy sitting next to her seemed optimistic of this comment, but he didn't say anything of it. "I'm Kimoto and I want to be a ninja because every man in my family had been great, and I must be great, too."
It was Yukie's turn. She didn't even know why she wanted to be a ninja herself, so she just said what came out. "I'm Yukie. I want to be a ninja because… It's my destiny." It would sound corny coming out of anybody's mouth, but for some reason, how Yukie said it, it sounded determined and brave. But to Yukie, it sounded practiced, like making that her reply was forced instinct from a life of being told what to do.
Sakura only smiled and introduced herself. "I'm Sakura. I'm a ninja because being a ninja is protecting those you care for with all you have and doing what's best for the world really counts. And because I can do this, I will. Everything you learned at the Ninja Academy will become real now. If you are not willing to die for your reason to become a ninja, leave now." She pointed at the door, but nobody left.
"Alright then," She clapped her hands together, "We will spend today getting to know each other. Do any of you have any questions for me?"
Senji raised her hand slowly and spoke, "What was your team like when you were first a Genin?"
Sakura smiled, "Wow, that's a great question." She went over to a shelf and pulled a framed picture from it. "This is a picture of me when I was your age." She pointed at each person as she named them off. "Up at the top is my sensei, Kakashi. Over here is Naruto, he used to teach team eight, but now he's working on becoming an ANBU. Here's me… when I kept my hair long. And here on the end is Sasuke… he left the Hidden Leaf Village a few years after this was taken…"
Her voice seemed to fade away, like when Yukie had overheard Kakashi talking about Talah. Yukie looked closely at the picture… Sasuke… he seemed distant in the picture, yet animated in her mind. She could hear him talking, him laughing, felt his touch. She had known him at one time. Then the pieces fell together. She could remember.
It was her last few moments in her village before Orochi-Kun placed the memory jutsu on her. She had already said goodbye to Talah and Leon, her two partners. Sasuke-Sensei lead her out into a forest where Orochi-Kun was waiting. Sasuke gave her a warm hug and Orochi-Kun told her something. Then, his hands moved quickly, Yukie's eyes trailed up to reach Orochi-Kun's, and everything went black. Words echoed in her head, in the darkness, "Until next time, My Pet."
But what was it Orochi-Kun had said before performing the jutsu? She couldn't remember. It was important, she knew it was. She had to remember. Before she knew what she was doing, Yukie had raised her hand into the air and asked to go to the bathroom. She absent-mindedly followed Sakura's instructions to the bathroom and locked the door behind her. Then Orochi-Kun's words came back: "Call for me once you remember." It was an order; it was Orochi-Kun's order. She had to obey.
Yukie raised her hands up to be level with her nose and performed the jutsu she remembered without knowing it; Shadow Summon. Then she spoke in a voice that echoed in her head and sounded foreign, yet familiar, "Orochi-Kun."
The room was enveloped in darkness that sprouted from Yukie's very being until all was covered in shadow. Out from the ground came the image of a tall, demanding form. He had long black hair and wore clothes that matched the style of the Sound ninjas. His chakra seemed to explode from within him, even in the illusion of his presence, and his whole being demanded attention. It was only the ghost of the man she wanted to see, an image projected by her power and the mind of him devoted to speaking to her without having to leave his place, wherever he was. Yukie only met his yellow snake's eyes for a second, before hers dropped to the floor. She had to show him respect. Not just because he was her master, but because he was the one and only Orochimaru.
