Emulation of Apathy

Chapter V

"Impatience"

…

"No."

"…Oh. What's wrong with it?"

"What's wrong with it?! What isn't wrong with it?!"

Sasuke threw the atrocious piece of clothing back in Kabuto's face, and the man caught it in a start.

"I think it will fit you quite nicely, though," the older Genin insisted with a slight shake of his head. "You could at least try it on, Sasuke-kun."

"Absolutely not," Sasuke folded his arms in front of him.

Kabuto tsked him, inspecting the clothing with a proud smile. "At least tell me what it is you don't like."

Sasuke focused his onyx gaze on the imbecile, glancing at the clothes only briefly, before lifting his eyes to the ninja once more. "The shirt's too big, the pants look uncomfortable, you didn't even include the Uchiha crest anywhere, the coloring is questionable, and what the hell is with that ugly purple rope?"

"Oh, Sasuke-kun," Kabuto laughed in his usual condescending manner, and Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the very sound of it. "That's not a rope, it's a waist-bow."

"It's a rope," Sasuke deadpanned.

"Don't be absurd," the older shinobi waved his words away. "It's something every member of our troupe wears."

Sasuke arched a brow at this statement. "Is that a fact?" he asked in the same dry voice, growing very annoyed with Kabuto. "Then why aren't you wearing one?"

"I am the medical ninja," Kabuto stated, an air of confidence in his voice as he pushed his glasses up the brim of his nose. "My uniform is supposed to be different, that way you can always find me. Of course, if you notice, I am wearing the necessary purple."

"Necessary?" Sasuke scowled up at him.

"Yes, it's our color, you see," the man explained. The tone he used, it was almost patronizing, and Sasuke was sick of listening to it.

"Whatever," the boy said as he rose to his feet and shoved his hands in his pockets. Walking past Kabuto and pulling his bedroom door open, he drawled, "I'm not wearing that."

"Well…we'll just have to discuss this with Orochimaru-sama, now, won't we?" Kabuto nodded decisively, clearly still very proud of his handiwork, and he folded it neatly, before following Sasuke. "He should be in the training room."

The Uchiha offered him no response, he merely continued in his pace. As it was, Kabuto had already told him that Orochimaru was waiting in the training room, and he was not sure why it had needed repeating. Perhaps the Genin was reminding himself? Now that he thought about it, this was not wholly unlikely. It would not be the first time Kabuto had proven himself a moron. And, somehow, Sasuke was absolutely certain it would not be the last.

Going tattling to Orochimaru over a stupid outfit. Honestly!

When they reached the designated door, Sasuke gripped the two handles and spread the door open, before stepping inside and promptly slamming it shut behind him in Kabuto's face. The startled look he received was rewarding, as he had anticipated, and he could not help the smirk that formed.

"Sasuke-kun."

What was it about that voice that sent chills down his spine? It was not even necessarily in a way that instilled fear, it was just…creepy. Unnerving. Sasuke shook his head of the feeling, as he brought his gaze to rest on the Sannin, who was standing at the far side of the large, open training room. However, his appearance was different today than it had been over the past two weeks: the bandages were no longer present, and, in place of the white spiked hair, Orochimaru's natural, long black hair had returned.

Was it really necessary to change one's appearance that often?

No matter. The young Uchiha crossed the room, his black eyes fixed determinedly on the Snake Master, and he instructed shortly, "Teach me how to control this thing."

"Sasuke-kun," Orochimaru chided him as a grin formed, "nothing I teach you will be immediate. It will require patience, time."

"Whatever, just start," Sasuke shot back.

"Sasuke-kun!" Kabuto stepped forward quickly, and he automatically placed him to the right-hand side of his master. "You really should be more appreciative of what Orochimaru-sama has to say. In the long run, it could be a matter of life and death."

"Kabuto," Orochimaru shook his head at him, but with the same grin, "he's eager to learn. Don't hinder the child's excitement."

"Ahh! Of course, Orochimaru-sama," the Genin said, his eyes widening as if he had reached some grand enlightenment. Doubtful. "Oh, I almost forgot," Kabuto continued, holding up the folded clothes in his arms for Orochimaru to see. "Sasuke-kun wasn't pleased with his new outfit."

"That is a pity," the Sannin noted, inspecting the attire with his eyes, before glancing back up at Kabuto. "Why not?"

"Well, let's see…," Kabuto fixed his glasses once more, before glancing over at the young Uchiha with a curious look as he handed the clothes to Orochimaru. "What were the reasons again, Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke held back the sigh of frustration, but he could not help but glare up at the older ninja. "It's hideous."

"Yes, but I thought you had a list of reasons," Kabuto urged him, that patronizing smile returning to his face.

"The stupid purple rope looks ridiculous—I've seen how you people tie it, it looks like a pretzel! Do you even know how to tie a bow? And why tie a bow with it at all? It looks ridiculous!" Sasuke explained in a fluster. "And the shirt's too big, and the pants are…strange, and you didn't add the Uchiha crest. I am not wearing it if it doesn't have the Uchiha crest."

"Kabuto, I told you he would want the crest," Orochimaru looked over at the Genin with a slight shake of his head. "Did you forget?"

"Ah, I suppose I must have," Kabuto mused. "Well, I can handle that stipulation. I'll just make another one."

"Dear Kabuto, always prepared for every scenario," Orochimaru complimented him, and the man simply pushed his glasses up the brim of his nose in response, the surface reflecting the dim light as he did.

"I will get to work right away," Kabuto nodded decisively, before crossing the distance of the room and shutting the doors behind him.

Idiot. Seriously, what an idiot. Did he honestly think that the only thing wrong with that outfit was the lack of an Uchiha crest? Sasuke shook his head. It was just as bad as he had envisioned—the moron clearly did not even possess a basic sense of fashion. Why Orochimaru allowed him to mediate the outfit designs was beyond him. Then again, why did Orochimaru let him handle the planning and strategizing? And cooking, for that matter? There was no sense to be made of any of it.

"Sasuke-kun," the Snake Master addressed him, and the boy's black eyes shot up to him instantly. "Are you ready to begin?"

"I've been ready," Sasuke deadpanned.

"Very well," Orochimaru's grin reappeared, his sharp teeth protruding from his mouth, and Sasuke did not even bother holding back the desire to wrinkle his nose in derision. "There will be three steps to controlling the cursed seal: the first step is a matter of building up physical endurance. You must have enough physical strength in order to control the seal on a regular basis, during the most fundamental fighting techniques. Once you have mastered that, we will move on to the second step: it will be-"

However, the Sannin was cut off when the training room doors were thrust open once more, and Sasuke glanced over his shoulder, only to award the approaching Genin an irritated look.

"I forgot the clothes," Kabuto explained with a slight laugh, and Orochimaru chuckled in response.

As he handed the clothing to the younger shinobi, Orochimaru pointed out, "You always manage to remember everything, don't you, Kabuto?"

Sasuke blinked twice. Remember everything? Was he serious? Try, he always managed to forget everything. If he had just remembered in the first place, he would not have needed to come back. For that matter, if he had not been so stupid and overlooked it, he would not even need to remember. And it had taken him quite some time to remember, as it was. And why had he handed the clothes to Orochimaru in the first place?

"Is the training progressing well?" the Genin was currently asking.

"Considerably," Orochimaru replied.

Considerably? What the hell did Orochimaru consider training? All he had done was begin an explanation of their procedure.

Glancing down at Sasuke with a pleasant smile, Kabuto noted, "See, Sasuke-kun? Wednesday was a perfect day to start training. Everything has worked out so nicely, hasn't it?"

Sasuke felt his eye twitch again, but he offered the man no response. Instead, he glared up at him, until Kabuto had exited the room once more.

"Now, then!" Orochimaru announced, and Sasuke glanced over at him to find he had one arm lifted in the air. He furrowed his brow at this, but probed no question. "We will begin your training."

"Wait…what?" Sasuke asked in confusion.

"Physical endurance," the Sannin pressed, as if it was obvious, before walking forward to stand behind Sasuke, and the boy felt that familiar chill. "So, to begin…do some push-ups."

The Uchiha turned around to face Orochimaru, his brow furrowed in utter bewilderment. "But, wait…what about the other two steps?"

"Oh, yes," Orochimaru released his usual guttural laugh. "The second step will be a matter of keeping the seal at bay during ninjutsu-based techniques. You will release certain amounts of chakra, which will gradually increase until you can resist it entirely, no matter the chakra amount. Once you have mastered that, we will proceed to the third step: actually controlling the seal. By which, of course, I mean, the ability to call forth its power at will, and in the varying degrees you wish to use."

Sasuke felt a wave of excitement building within him at the prospect, but he maintained the same indifferent expression as he nodded his head. "Good."

"Excellent," Orochimaru nodded in turn, before stamping his foot against the ground, and Sasuke could not help but wonder his reason behind it. For all he could tell, it looked like a child throwing some sort of a fit. "Now, begin those push-ups."

"Right," the young Uchiha replied, dropping to the ground on one knee, but he soon brought his onyx gaze to rest on the Sannin in confusion. "How many?"

With a wave of his hand and a strange laugh that sounded like it was mixed with a scoff, Orochimaru stated, "As many as you can do."

Sasuke was really beginning to question Orochimaru's training methods.

All he had done all day were multiple series of push-ups. Once he had fallen due to exhaustion from one set, the Snake Sannin would simply stare down at him until he recovered. Then, he would urge him to do it again, and the cycle continued. There were no windows, so it was difficult to tell the time of day, but he guessed it was late afternoon. Which meant he had been in this room doing push-ups for approximately 8 hours.

At least Kakashi had always given him full explanations for everything he had taught him, especially when requested. Orochimaru, on the other hand, said very little, and, when asked, he would just give a slight shrug of his shoulders and then that eerie smile.

Whatever. If he was the Legendary Sannin, he must know what he was doing.

Maybe…

Probably…

Right?

Sasuke almost scoffed at this very notion. Right. Orochimaru have a clue what he was doing. That would be a first. He doubted he had ever had a pupil before, and, as he had begun to notice, the man certainly loved to experiment, so perhaps that was all this training was: an experiment. It would not surprise him. It seemed a more realistic explanation than any he could come up with. Which made the young Uchiha wonder if Orochimaru even knew if those three steps would help him master the cursed seal.

Nevertheless, Sasuke opted to continue in this training process, because, all things considered, it actually made sense. Quite a bit more sense than most things that came out of the Sannin's mouth, at the very least. Not the push-ups, necessarily, but the three stages.

But, perhaps there was a more effective way to achieve mastery of this seal on a physical level?

However, even as he thought this, the young shinobi suddenly felt a piercing pain shoot through his right shoulder, and he instantly fell to the ground mid-way through his current push-up, barely managing to catch himself with his elbow. He lifted his left hand and clutched it tightly against the source of the pain, against that mark, and forced the burning sensation back as best he could. His breathing was strained and rapid, and the young Uchiha forced long, slow breaths in attempt to calm his body and lessen the trembling in his right arm.

The burning pain did not subside, but he had managed to push back the trembling and bring his breathing to a normal pace, and, therefore, he forced himself to a sitting position on the floor. Only then did he remember the presence of Orochimaru, and he focused his black eyes on the man with a scowl.

"Excellent, Sasuke-kun," the Sannin complimented, with his grin, and that almost obsessed gaze that always managed to unnerve the boy.

"What's so excellent about it?" Sasuke shot back irritably, pressing his hand against the seal tighter in attempt to ease the pain.

"8 hours of nothing but physical labor, and, even then, you manage to force the seal back," Orochimaru informed him. "This is an excellent beginning. Truly, you are more worthy of this gift than any who have come before."

More worthy, huh? Well, he did not doubt that, especially considering the idiotic Sound Ninja who had the seal, and who, quite frankly, were even more moronic than Orochimaru and Kabuto. Then again, there was that one powerful ninja who had been standing beside him when the seals on the container had been released. He did not know anything about him, though. Based on the remaining company, however, he was probably an idiot, too.

"How long did it take them?" Sasuke found himself asking.

"Oh, most people died," the Sannin stated matter-of-factly, as if these lives were a trifling matter. "Only about 10% of everyone granted this power survived. As for those who did survive, most could not master the use of it, and those who did took several years. Only Kimimaro managed to control it at the rapidity you are demonstrating."

"Kimimaro…," Sasuke mused, searching for some recollection of the name, but none came. "Who is that?"

"He is the one who intercepted your container after the others fell, and he gave his life ensuring you made your way to me," Orochimaru replied, his eyes widening in excitement as he relayed this information to Sasuke, and the boy cringed when the man's long tongue protruded, saliva dripping as he licked his lips. "He was originally the chosen one, but he fell ill, most likely a result of his bloodline limit."

"You originally trained him, then?" the Uchiha inquired.

"Oh, no," Orochimaru chuckled. "He and I simply had an agreement."

"An agreement?" Sasuke furrowed his brow. "What the hell do you mean by that?"

"You will see, Sasuke-kun…," Orochimaru stared down at him almost longingly, "…in time."

The boy turned away from the Sannin, no longer comfortable meeting his gaze, and he instead brought his dark eyes to inspect the training room. As he did this, however, his confidence returned and another question arose. "What do you mean, when you say I'm the chosen one?" he asked.

"Oh, Sasuke-kun," Orochimaru chided him, his raspy laugh sounding once more. "All will be revealed to you in due time."

Sasuke scowled at this answer, but he did not question the older ninja any further. He simply resolved to uncover the meaning behind this statement himself. After all, if he listened to Orochimaru and Kabuto long enough, they might even reveal it to him on a whim, unintentionally. After all, everything seemed casual conversation for those two.

Forcing himself to his feet, his legs aching in protest, Sasuke returned his onyx gaze to the Snake Master and adopted his impassive façade once more. "Orochimaru," he addressed the man, and the elder's glowing serpent eyes locked on him in anticipation of whatever he had to say. "Have you ever trained anyone before?"

"Now that you mention it, I did train one person, for a few days, but he died shortly after," Orochimaru replied easily.

Sasuke continued to stare up at him blankly, though he was a little shocked by this answer, and he could not help but notice a certain pattern that was beginning to emerge. Everyone in association with Orochimaru somehow managed to end up dead. Interesting…

Well, except Kabuto.

"What the hell is the matter with you?"

Kabuto lowered the shirt in his hands and inspected it carefully, before returning his gaze to the young Uchiha in perplexity. "I added the crest, like you wanted."

"Yes, but it looks exactly the same as before," Sasuke rolled his eyes at the Genin. "Did you even use a different shirt?"

"Of course not," Kabuto chuckled lightly.

"Give me that!" Sasuke snatched the fabric away from Kabuto and inspected the over-sized shirt, before turning it to the back. It was true, it did have his clan's crest, but it was horribly drawn. Wait, drawn? "You drew the crest?!" the boy asked in frustration.

"Painted," the Genin corrected him proudly.

"I am not wearing this piece of shit," the Uchiha threw the shirt back in Kabuto's face, and the man caught it with a perturbed look in place. "Come up with something else, and show me the design before you make it," the boy instructed.

"I thought for sure this would work," Kabuto released a heavy sigh, beginning the laborious task of neatly folding the shirt and then setting it on the table. "Do you approve of the color, then?"

Sasuke let his black eyes wander over the material, before awarding the man a slightly annoyed look. "No," he replied shortly. "Green is not…my color."

"I'll remember that," the older shinobi assured him with a firm nod of his head. "Not the color green." Inspecting Sasuke's current apparel with a critical eye, the man then said, "And honestly, I think you're getting a little old for that bright blue."

"It's not…bright blue," Sasuke followed the man's gaze to his shirt, with a slight frown. With a shrug, however, he turned his back to Kabuto and said, "Whatever, just make it something neutral, then."

"Neutral," the Genin repeated, and Sasuke rolled his eyes, walking out of the small room and stepping into the main passageway.

He had continued training with Orochimaru for another 4 hours, during which time, the cursed seal had begun acting up more and more frequently as exhaustion had settled in. Much to his dismay, the Sannin had decided to call it a day, and instructed him to report to Kabuto for an update on the outfit. Not that that had gone over well. The idiot…

Presently, he made his way down the passageway to the kitchen, where he pulled the door open and promptly headed to the fridge. While Kabuto had been away, he had apparently bought groceries to resupply the refrigerator, and Sasuke decided to take advantage of the opportunity to forgo both the imbecilic Genin's cooking and the ramen that was starting to become customary.

However, when he opened the fridge door, the Uchiha found it in much the same state it had been the night before, with an addition of three cartons of eggs and two cheesecakes. That was what those two idiots considered grocery shopping? This was ridiculous.

Sasuke slammed the door shut and walked over to the pantry, where he grabbed a cup of ramen and then set it on the small kitchen table. He set a kettle of water to boil on the stove and then prepared the teapot. If he had to boil water, he might as well get the most out of it. The young Uchiha then crossed the room and took a seat at the table, propping his elbow on it and resting his chin in his palm. As he waited for the water, he began fiddling absently with the lid on the ramen container.

…

"I really love ramen! I really, really love eating at Ichiraku Ramen!"

Sakura heaved a sigh, glancing over at Naruto with a mildly annoyed look. "Naruto, stop it. We're not even at Ichiraku's."

"But the Old Man makes the best ramen!" Naruto declared energetically. "I especially love it when Iruka-sensei makes it his treat!"

Kakashi shook his head, handing Naruto's cup of ramen to him. "Here, eat up."

"Okay!" Naruto nodded happily, grabbing a pair of chopsticks and, as he broke them, he exclaimed, "Itadakimasu!"

"Sakura," Kakashi's eyes closed in the characteristic way they always did when he smiled, and he handed a cup to her as well.

"Thank you, Kakashi-sensei," the girl smiled sweetly, brushing a hand through her long, pink hair before accepting the serving.

"Here, Sakura-chan!" Naruto faced her with a broad grin as he offered her a pair of chopsticks.

Sakura rolled her eyes, but nevertheless accepted the utensils, a little more rough than necessary, and Naruto frowned at her.

"Sakura-chan…," he whined.

"Oh, shut-up, Naruto," the girl waved him off with a slight gesture of her hand. She then began eating her meal, purposefully seeming slow and paced at first. However, as was always the case with that girl, the longer she ate her food, the faster she got, revealing an inner nature that was not quite as ladylike as she would have the world believe.

Kakashi then handed the last cup to the other boy. "Sasuke."

Sasuke nodded his head as he accepted the dish, about to reach for a pair of chopsticks, but Sakura was already holding a pair out for him to accept. He held back the sigh, but could not refrain from awarding her an annoyed look as he accepted the chopsticks from her. Honestly, he sometimes wondered if she ever realized how alike she and Naruto were. Doubtful. If she did, it was unlikely the blond would annoy her as much as he always seemed to.

As they began eating in silence, it was quickly broken by Naruto. Then again, it usually was.

"You know what I really hate?" he asked no one in particular, and, therefore, no one answered. "The 3 minutes you have to wait after pouring the water."

This was not the first time Naruto had complained about those 3 minutes, and they all knew it would not be the last. The three of them had gotten into a habit of not responding to him when he said it, but this time, Sasuke found himself compelled to make a remark.

"There are longer things you'll have to wait for in life, Naruto," he drawled, his black eyes fixed on the noodles in his cup as he swirled them back and forth with his chopsticks, just for the sake of looking at something. "You might as well get used to being patient."

"That's right, Naruto!" Sakura immediately agreed with him, and Sasuke had to resist the urge to roll his eyes at her. "A ninja must have patience!"

"I know that," Naruto jutted out his bottom lip in a pout as he hung his head in shame. "I still hate those 3 minutes."

…

Sasuke was pulled from his reverie at the sound of a whistling kettle, and he immediately shot to his feet. Crossing the kitchen, he shut off the burner and then filled the teapot. As he did, the scent of jasmine wafted through the air, invading his senses, but he quickly pushed this aside and walked back to the table to fill the ramen cup, as well. He then set the kettle on the stove and opened the drawer to grab a pair of chopsticks. He also grabbed a mug from the cabinet for his tea, and then set them all on the table in front of him.

Retaking his seat, his rested his chin back in his palm and focused his dark gaze on the cup of ramen. A slight smirk forming at the corner of his mouth, he shook his head at the memory. Naruto always was a very impatient person, no matter the situation, and though he had a sunny disposition, he also had a short fuse. And, when that fuse was lit, he became explosive. In fact, even when he was happy, he was explosive. He was just an all-around explosive person.

As for Sakura, that girl was just ridiculous. She fell into a brief depression every time he shot her down, and yet, she turned around and did the same thing to Naruto. She threw insults at Naruto, calling him annoying, whiney, or a pig, and then she acted the exact same way.

Sasuke frowned at thought. She really did annoy him.

He shook his head of this, however, and forced his attention back to the present. The Uchiha tried to focus his mind on his training, on building up the physical capability to resist the cursed seal, on exceeding even Kimimaro when he managed to master control faster. However, the longer he stared down at the cup of ramen, the more and more a certain boy with blond spiked hair kept screaming in his head, "I still hate those 3 minutes!"

What was it about those 3 minutes that always made them seem to drag on for an eternity? That made even the most tolerant people impatient?

He himself could be patient when it came to almost anything—biding his time in seeking revenge, waiting until he was stronger, patiently following Kakashi's instructions when he had learned the Chidori, even listening to Orochimaru's nonsensical directions, and rhythmically doing push-ups for 12 hours straight. And yet, there was something about those 3 minutes that made them so insufferable.

"I still hate those 3 minutes!"

The smirk returning, Sasuke confessed, "I hate those 3 minutes, too, Naruto."