[May update 2/3]

AN: Hey, reader! Missed you.

Orochimaru and Jiraiya have a conversation neither wants to have.

Present

We Will Never Be Silent

4 Months Into the Second Shinobi World War

Jiraiya knows better than to kiss and tell.

Secrets follow him like a ghost to a grave. If his younger self from 20 years ago could see him now—the idiotic, unpredictable orphan in charge of spymaster duties. To roam countless places in search of game-changing secrets. He'd laugh at it, assuming it to be a novel found not in the hands of adoring fans but in the bottom of bins, the first trash to be thrown away.

Today, though, he has a secret far, far worse than the petty squabbles of ninja.

"Jiraiya? What are you doing here? Injured?" At the front desk sits a curvy brunette, curls as big as her doe eyes.

"Ah, Shizuka[1], how are you? For once, I am not injured." He lifts his arms and turns, letting the light of the windows glitter on his mesh undershirt. "Are you doing just as fine?"

"Yes…so why are you here?"

"It's simple, really. My friend works here. I'm to deliver a small aside, and I will be on my way."

The receptionist furrows her brows. "I'm sorry, but we're too busy for that. Can I leave a message?"

"Oh, no no. This message can't be found out, you see…"

"Jiraiya, what are you getting on about?"

Grinning harder, he leans over the counter. "Tsunade needs to have a word with me. Courtesy of the Hokage."

At that, she widens her eyes. "O-Oh! Lady Tsunade[2] is in the herb garden. Do you know where it is?"

"If I said no, would you guide me?"

"Well"—she sighs silently—"it's my job to do so."

"By all means…" He gestures to the opening of the front desk.

In no time, he's walking through the heart of the first floor, the beginnings of the trauma center overflowing into general mass. Behind privacy curtains are moans and cries of pain. The white tile is splashed by ruby and brown colors. The thick, brittle smell of an aroma he can't place clings to his chest.

Shizuka does not bother to look around the hospital. She unlocks the back door, continuing down the path to a large greenhouse. As they near, a man walks out—dark hair, sharp gaze, sleepless eyes. In his hands, a clipboard.

The sound of heels on gravel road jerks his attention away. The medic walks to meet the duo as if he'd run them over had he not stopped and said, "Shizuka, tell the botanist we suspect Mentha and Sassafras tzumu for the Bloodless Affair."

She nods once after repeating his words under her breath. "Understood!"

Jiraiya can't say the same. "What about the Bloodless Affair?"

The medic scowls at him, as if just noticing his existence. "Who is this man?"

"I come with a message, sir—Nara, aren't you?" With a wink, he tilts his head in the greenhouse's direction. "I have important news to tell a certain someone. If you have anything that would help, I'd love to hear it."

The Nara medic's body grows rigid. "We have nothing at the moment. Deliver your message quickly." He cuts through the middle of the pair.

Jiraiya looks at the man's fleeting figure. "What's his deal?"

They arrive at the greenhouse without much problem. Jiraiya enters alone.

The greenhouse is, expectedly, the last place he'd ever want to be. A hot springs in hell. Nothing good to look at except plants.

No, not true—at a long table stands a woman. Golden hair pulled back and concealed by a bun cover, her strong stance decorated by white and red. How can he forget her? His heart will never let her go.

"Guess who's back?" He can't keep the grin out his voice.

She freezes at his words before spinning on her heels. Oh, her eyes…golden brown in the sunlight. Rich and captivating.

"You were almost gone long enough to make me miss you." Tsunade smirks.

"Really now? I travel halfway across the world and that isn't enough? You never could be satisfied, huh?"

"One of us has to save the world."

Jiraiya swallows. For a moment, his throat burns.

Tsunade pays no mind as she hops onto the table and beckons him closer. "I don't have much free time."

He clears his throat, cracks his knuckles. "Right. The Sand's struggling. They're weeks away from total desperation. We don't need that—there's no telling what they'd do once they feel hopeless."

Tsunade nods. "We can't do anything about their economy, though. The Leaf Council won't approve it. Plus, Earth has no reason to stop border disputes with Wind. Those countries need to grow up, or they'll both burn up."

"No, don't listen to that crap—we need to do something for Wind. People are dying. Not because of war."

"I know that. That's why we need to convince Wind to surrender before they're too damaged."

"And, what, ignore them like we did Water? Iron? Pretend they can actually fix their issues? The problem is still there."

"Tragic. But we can't save everyone. We have to…accept losses. The goal is to minimize it, Jiraiya."

At their core, they are different people. Arguing won't change the way they lived their lives. "Yeah, well…I have info about the poisonmaster. Actually, poisonmistress. The woman's name is Chiyo. Apparently, the poison she uses is from a shadow viper."

"I've…never heard of such a thing…"

"I haven't even seen one. I couldn't make it to the Sand. Travel is prohibited."

"Weird."

"Right? I stayed at the closest villages, but that's as much as I could manage. I don't even know if Orochimaru would have a clue about 'em."

She smiles. "Probably not. He was in the hospital not too long ago. Avoiding me. I could've asked him about antivenin at least. Although, just because he has snake summons doesn't mean he has snake knowledge."

Jiraiya isn't so convinced. There's rumors—rare and limited to the older generation—of Orochimaru and the hebitsukai. Whatever that means. He can't find any other information, and Orochimaru is too defensive about it. "Okay, onto a problem we can figure out. Know anything about this whole Bloodless Affair?"

Tsunade crosses her arms, a dark look passing over her face. "In some battles, there are mass…killings of Wind kunoichi. Here's the thing: no one on our side is doing it. And when they die, their bodies are left on the battlefield marked with a label: bloodless. But they're soaked in dried blood. Their own blood."

"Ooookay, that's not disturbing at all…"

She chuckles dryly. Medic's humor. "We suspect Chiyo is using the women as lab rats to perfect her poison. All in attempt to make it damn hard for us to figure out how to make an antidote. Autopsy suggests a Mentha plant or an illicit drug. Wasn't expecting a shadow viper, though."

"You think if we uncover the affair, we can stop Chiyo's poisons?"

"Most likely. Mentha plants aren't native to Wind. There's a botanist cultivating this specific herb and carefully harvesting its oils. At any rate, vipers do produce hemotoxins[3] consistent with the liver and kidney damage findings…" She trails off in thought.

"Uh…yeah, totally, sounds good!"

"Alright, I'm going to continue dissecting the corpses and talking to our botany department. Meaning I have a date with smartasses."

Jiraiya winces. "Good luck."

"For me or them?"

"Obviously, them."

A relaxed smile grows on her face. The very smile he grew up with. A smile untarnished by stress and bloodshed. She calmly walks over to his side, lifting a fist and brushing it against his chest. "Don't push yourself, dumbo. You're not dying on me any time soon."

"Me? The Great Jiraiya? As if! I have things to do! People to save!"

"Oh? Like what? Who?"

Bringing a finger to his lips, he winks. "It's my secret."

The forest might as well be home to a ghost town.

Orochimaru saunters along the gravel road, underneath full trees with draping, pale-lavender flowers. An odd petal or three dot the ground only to be brushed away by the wind to shrivel and darken. Yet, once the petals hits the grass, the brilliant color bring life to it. In the south-east outskirts of the Leaf Village, the Wisteria Forest protects the lose collection of farmhouses long since abandoned in favor of urbanization.

The near silence makes his ears ring, but also draws attention to any odd noise. Comforting, in a way. Even more so is the dark wood of the gate he unlocks and enters, rushing, like stalked prey.

Up ahead in a reasonably sized house, one story tall. On the front lawn is a sign written in beautiful calligraphy: Orochimaru's Home.

A breath of relief escapes him once the front door is shut. Beyond is his domain. No one is home. All is how he left it.

He takes off his shoes and slides into slippers. The tightness of his chest vanishes upon removing his flak jacket. He feel like air as his ninja pouches fall into his bed—no taller than the kotatsu[4] heating table a meter away. Off his top goes. The sunlight makes the grayish skin covering his lean body almost flush with color. Golden rays drift onto his bed, and, after fighting the urge, he climbs into the bed, into the warmth. He curls up in the small area, gazing at his room. It's nearly three times as big as his apartment. The woodwork on the room dividers, walls, doors was made by someone who held this home dear.

Enough being lazy. He made a promise.

Forcing himself to rise is painful but energizing. He drop his dirty clothes once changing in the wicker basket next to the dresser. Stone statues of squirrels, frogs, other small creatures stare at him on top. He avoids their eyes.

The bathroom is the closest. After cleaning the tub, hot water mixed with bath salts await Jiraiya. The curls of steam are enticing…Jiraiya won't mind if he baths first, huh?

He hurries into the kitchen, though. The groceries he bought are still edible. Moving on instinct, he has the sink running and cleaning the rice, pouring the white fluff into the rice cooker. All the counters are full with some kind of device or food. No matter how many renovations to modernize the old home, there isn't space to work with.

He handles the food that cooks the fastest first, adds in sliced beef, grills fillet, sprinkles spices. The combined aroma irritates his nose. He opens the sliding doors and windows all through the main room to diminish the smell. All it seems to do is make the white stucco almost glow with warmth. Even the rich brown woodwork is brighter.

In an hour, meals in black dishes pattern the low table, starting with rice and noodles.

Behind his back while he stirs, the front door clicks open.

"Orochimaru," is Jiraiya's exaggerated cry. "It smells so good!"

He does not bother looking over as he pours the mixture of chicken, eggs, vegetables, and sauce over the rice. "Bath."

"Uh-huh…"

His teammate must think he's so stealthy despite making the floor creak. Even as he sticks his grubby hands into the pot to steal a fistful of ginger pork. He says nothing while Jiraiya whines about it being too hot and eating it all.

"Oh, before I go," Jiraiya burps. "Tsunade is coming over to eat once she's done!"

Tsunade.

"Her favorite…" he mumbles.

"Don't cook something else! You're almost done. Give her a beer and call it a day."

No. Too plain. He cooks under Jiraiya's gaze, waiting for the chatterbox to leave or talk.

Finally, his teammate speaks. "Orochimaru? Got a second to let me bother you? Well, bother some more."

He's waiting for the last of the food to cook, anyways. "Mm."

Jiraiya leans on the opposite side of the kitchen counter, shifting his weight from leg to leg. "Okay. Wow. There's no easy way to say this, so…I reverse summoned to the toads, right? There—um, this'll sound crazy, but there's this prophecy."

Orochimaru's stomach drops like lead.

"Basically…the world's gonna end. Or not, hopefully? The savior of our world can stop that. I've got to find him. I've gotta teach him—yeah, me." Jiraiya forces out a laugh. "I'm a perv, y'know. I can try to hide it, but it doesn't go away. I barely graduated. I couldn't get the girl of my dreams. I walked up and down the streets shouting I'll be the next Hokage, and you two have done hell of a lot more than me."

Orochimaru hates when Jiraiya thinks so poorly of himself. "Comparisons are useless."

"You two were born privileged. Great family. Great power…smarts. I got none of that."

Orochimaru is shaking his head. The water is slowly beginning to boil.

"That's not the point, though. If I do this—I could accomplish something, Orochimaru. As long as I don't screw it up, I can have my own legacy." The grin that cracks his face is joyless. "Jiraiya, the Gallant; Sensei of the Savior. It won't be me running to and fro like a kid saying I'm the Hokage. It'll be real…"

Bubbles grow and pop at odd intervals. Like the ticking of a clock.

"I know you're probably thinking, 'Why is this guy talking to magic toads and taking what they say about a future seriously?' I…asked myself the same all while I was heading back home." Jiraiya takes the empty paper towel roll and pushes it back and forth.

"Ignore it." The bubbles are popping faster.

"Ignore what? The toads or the future?"

"Whichever makes you happy."

"Ah, so ignorance?"

"If it helps."

"Alright then. Tell me something, okay? Don't think. Just—if you had a chance to know the future and…have a shot at saving it…could you?"

The bubbles are big enough to be clearly seen through the vapor cloud.

"Thinking about hypotheticals will drive you crazy."

"Who's not crazy, Orochimaru? We're all screwed up. We're child soldiers, for God's sake! Everyone hates it, but nobody's fixing it."

"There are some things we cannot fix."

"Would you save the future if you could? I need to know, Orochimaru!"

"No." Orochimaru grabs the pot handle and turns the heat down, but not before a bubble could burst and splash scalding water onto his hand. He jerks it away. "Live in the present peacefully."

Jiraiya had gotten up, opened the fridge, and is now pressing a cold beer onto his hand. "Sorry, buddy."

"You did not cause this." Orochimaru takes the can.

"Not that. I mean, you're probably right. Hell, you're always right somehow. But, I always make mistakes. Y'know, maybe I have a chance at fixing something greater than me. Even if I fail…I tried."

Jiraiya's eyes are sad and strong. He's still so young, but lines have grown across his face.

"This will not end well for you," Orochimaru states.

"Yeah, well, I'm not afraid of the end. Life's a journey, right?" Grinning again, Jiraiya shuffles off. "Oh, nearly forgot! Tsunade's working overtime on a messed up case. She needs you to head over to the shrine and pray for the family."

Orochimaru's eyebrow twitches.

"Man, I need a bath so badly. Aghh…"

He regrets he made the bath so inviting.

Orochimaru sets out once the cooking is finished, back under the suspended lavender flowers of the Wisteria Forest. For 16 minutes, not a soul appears. Only the few farmhouses—some more abandoned than others. It no longer matters, though, as the distant view is obscured by gold and lavender.

The gravel road morphs into a stone path. A latticed fence, arching on the path around and above him, is the bed for a blanket of wisteria flowers to rest. The flowers dangle through the gaps, high enough for the Raikage's head to graze it. The Wisteria Flower Tunnel[5] is the second landmark of the shrine.

The first being the massive, purple shrine gate[6].

As soon as he crosses underneath, the summer heat cools. The surrounding forest is quiet despite the breeze. He searches the area for a threat…there's nothing. He hurries to the purification fountain[7], snatching the dipper and splashing his hands and mouth with cool waters that, even when dry, still make him feel cold.

He crosses the second shrine gate. The world hushes.

Ahead, the guardian Nine Tails statues sit to either side of the worshiper's path[8], encroaching onto the flagstone. He stays in the middle to avoid the angry glare of the foxes.

Finally, he crosses the sacred fence[9] and the Wisteria Shrine is up ahead.

The building is not all that tall nor noteworthy. The flagstone path leading to it has cracks from the passage of time but not the tell-tale stains of footsteps everyday. Its lavender paint is faded. Its white stucco walls are chipped. It is ancient, if the sloped, weathered rain-washed-roofs doesn't give it away. At regular intervals are stone lanterns, fresh oil only just hidden in the shadow.

He looks for the shrine priest or the shrine maiden. Nothing. Even the shrine office, where merchandise and other nonessentials are housed, is closed.

He sighs. This is a waste of time.

The main sanctuary has no doors or windows but a latticed design not unlike its flower tunnel. He can't see much inside, but there is no need to venture further. Outside, he can pay 600 ryou in order to pray to the entity enshrined here: a woman named Uzume.

Who or what she is alludes him. If the entity is this unknown, it makes sense why the Wisteria Shrine would never have any visitors. No visitors aside from Tsunade, of course.

Before the war, she'd step outside the Home for an hour every week. She's the one who pulled him to the shrine in order to bless their home. For New Years, Team Hiruzen showed up to pray. To her, the shrine will bless Tokonoma and Hazuo with long lives even though they are nearing the end.

He joined her to make her happy. But the fact that for over 20 years, he has never liked shrines nor praying. It is nonsensical. There is nothing after the end. There will never be anything. There are no deities nor ghosts nor karma. Just slumber.

Yet here he is, hands clasped together, whispering the same prayer Tsunade uses. A waste of time. Only one thing irritates him more.

It is the depths of summer, and he is freezing.

"Good morning, sir! I'm—I was busy cleaning…"

Behind him, soundlessly, a woman is fiddling with the lace cuffs of her kimono robes. Her wide, blue eyes are as faded as the shrine building—nearly white if she were further away. Apricot-colored hands stand out vividly in front of the thick, spring-green waist-bow and skirt of her robes. Trembling hands.

"I'm deeply…deeply sorry I couldn't greet you immediately, sir."

She bows once more.

She hardly looks like a ninja. How'd she sneak up on him? Is she real? A threat?

"If you'd like to—it's not necessary! But, if you wanted to purchase a gift or item at the office, I will open it, sir. Um." For the first time since arriving, she meets his eyes—whether due to anxiety or she's so short that the top of her hair reaches his shoulders. "Oh! Is your friend alright, sir?"

Friend? She must be the shrine maiden. He has no memory of seeing her on his visits.

"…I hope she is. She usually buys flowers. Agapanthus! Did you…want to buy them for her, sir? They don't even cost all that much! Unless, you—"

Would Tsunade want him to? Would that make her happy? Would it frustrate her that she couldn't do it herself?

He does not need to be here. He completed his task. He needs to go.

The shrine maiden turns and walks in the direction of the office, however. He could ask her what Tsunade gets—

His heart nearly stops.

The Wisteria Forest surrounding the shrine snatches his attention away. The wind flutters the flowers, a mosaic of lavender and green. Beautiful, if it isn't for the fact that it makes no sound.

The world is silent.

It can't be silent.

Goosebumps dot his skin all over. He is freezing. Like hundreds of snakes coiling themselves around his body, cold scales squeezing the warmth from him.

He should not be here. He shouldn't—

His limbs are frozen now, impossibly heavy to move. As the flagstone path comes into view, it feels as though he is watching a movie, no longer a participant in his life.

FOOTNOTES:

[1] shizuka (静花) - quiet/calm

[2] Lady Tsunade is used here referring to her status as the First Hokage's granddaughter as well as the Second Hokage's grandniece. For respect. As of now, Tsunade has not revolutionized the medical field.

[3] hemo, meaning blood; toxins meaning toxic substance. "hemotoxins, or toxic substances to blood"

[4] kotatsu tables are popularly used as a huge portion of places lack central heating/cooling. Just wanted to re-touch base.

[5] There's a flower tunnel in Kitakyushu, Japan—if you wanted to see what it looks like in real life.

[6] torii — the massive red bridge you see in Hashirama's jutsu or the Naka Shrine

[7] temizuya — water purification ritual so you don't bring your grim/sins into a pure, godly place

[8] sandou — the route that you walk in a shrine. you must either on the left/right. middle is reserved for otherworldly

[9] tamagaki — the fence protecting the shrine.