A/N: I apologize again for taking so long to get this chapter up. I've been really busy. Hopefully the next one won't take so long. Thanks for the favs, follows and reviews, they're always much appreciated. Enjoy, and read "Illusions of Serenity" and "Vigil of Sorrows" as well.
Emulation of Apathy
Chapter XVI
"Encounter of Intrigue"
…
He stood with his arms folded in front of his chest, and his back leaned casually against the wall. His dark gaze was not fixed on anything particular, and in fact, there was a certain glaze over his eyes, which stared pointedly into nothingness, indicative of an absent mind. His expression was unreadable. Even inattentive, with thoughts faraway, his countenance defaulted to that typical apathy.
Beside him, the older man leant against the wall as well, in a very leisurely manner, and he too had his arms crossed, though his entire being gave off a much more relaxed aura. On his face, a smile etched at the corner of his mouth, and his glowing yellow eyes peered out from beneath his sleek, ebony hair, ever watchful.
The two stood side by side, beside the entrance of a rather cluttered shop, and the older of the two kept his watchful gaze fixed on the different groups of people who walked in and out, and perused through the aisles. He took in the various conversations throughout the store, and allowed his smile to grow just a little wider at each amusing interaction.
Time was passing slowly, and outside the shopping area, the sun burned brightly in the afternoon sky. It seemed almost fixated on that one point in the sky, as if refusing to continue on its course and fall any lower, as if trapping everyone in that one single hour.
But it had not just been an hour. In fact, these two had been standing in this same position for almost three hours, now. And not by their own design, either. Quite the contrary. They had agreed earlier that morning to take a shopping detour, and, since then, they had finished their own shopping and had proceeded to wait by the entrance for the third member of their company. And the third member was taking his time near the back of the store, completely absorbed in all the labels, and balancing the prices.
As he did every time he was released on a store.
An old, wooden carved clock hanging on the wall chimed again, for what was the fourth time since they had arrived at the store, and several shoppers began filing out of the doorway. The older man gave the younger a slight nudge in the side, and, barely shifting position, they both moved to the right a few feet. As the clock continued to tick on the wall, and as more and more people exited the store, leaving it almost vacant, even the previously amused inhabitant began to show signs of impatience. He began shifting his weight back and forth between his feet, and crossing and uncrossing his arms. At one point, he started tapping his index finger against his folded arm, and it was then that conversation finally made its way between these two.
"How long has it been, Sasuke-kun?"
The younger shinobi pulled his mind from its wanderings, alerted by the sound of the older man's voice, and he proceeded to lift his eyes to the clock. After a brief calculation, he replied in a dry tone, "4 hours and 23…24 minutes."
"Has it?" the Sannin mused, and his gaze drifted to the back of the store, where he was obviously casting that partial glare at his subordinate. "What exactly do you suppose he's buying this time?"
Sasuke gave a disinterested shrug of his shoulders, "Nothing useful. He might not even be buying anything. Just looking. After all this going back and forth, he's probably going to decide it's not worth the expense."
"How whimsical," Orochimaru released a low, throaty chuckle. "Dear Kabuto, concerned with something as insignificant as price."
"It's Kabuto," Sasuke drawled. "He has a knack for doing…insignificant things."
The chuckle erupted once more from the Snake Master, and Sasuke held back the bored sigh he was threatened to release. He turned his gaze from the Sannin and began a slow sweep of the store. How anyone could find something so interesting in a place like this astounded him. Spending hours in here was utter nonsense. But then…it was as he had said. This was Kabuto.
"Sasuke-kun!"
The Uchiha returned his onyx stare to Orochimaru, and the older shinobi proceeded to hand his grocery bag to him.
"I am going to do a bit more shopping," the Sannin informed him. "You never know what you might find after looking through something a second time. Perhaps even a third."
"Please tell me you're joking," Sasuke deadpanned, feeling a slight impatient twitch of his finger in his hold on the groceries.
"Quite the contrary," Orochimaru disagreed with that usual, amused smile of his. And with that, he was off, turning abruptly and beginning a leisurely pace down the rows of aisles.
The young Uchiha allowed the sigh, leaning back against the wall once more and setting the bags of groceries on the floor. This entire detour was such a waste of time. If it seemed as if it was going to near 5 hours, he would approach Kabuto himself and, more than likely, Orochimaru would agree, and they would force him to abandon this useless escapade of his.
Sasuke really did wonder if that vindictive little moron did it on purpose, just for the sake of annoying him. He would not put it past him. There were many things he did on purpose, after all, deny it though he might. Couldn't have his dear Orochimaru-sama know that, after all.
Oh well.
He rested his dark eyes on the Snake Master, watched him make his way through the aisles, but, before long, he began to detect that same, underlying impatience. His smile was gone, and his eyes were narrowed in boredom. With a smirk, Sasuke realized that he was not the only one getting fed up with the ridiculous medic. Perhaps waiting any longer would be pointless.
The shinobi pushed away from the wall, not bothering to take the bags with him. The shop was almost entirely deserted, so there was no one who could take them, and this encounter with Kabuto should not take long. He crossed the store and came to a stop beside the idiot, who was currently muttering something under his breath as his black eyes darted from a box in his hands and one on the shelf in front of him.
Sasuke proceeded to snatch the box away from him, and Kabuto's mouth dropped in a bewildered gape.
"Buy this one," he drawled.
"Excuse you!" the moronic Genin straightened himself, as if to tower above the younger shinobi.
However, it had been several months now since Sasuke had passed the moron in height, something Kabuto clearly refused to acknowledge. So it really was counterproductive. No matter, his ridiculous attempts to appear intimidating, superior were actually rather amusing.
The young man then rested his hand on his hip and began complaining, "Sasuke-kun, you really have no knowledge of such matters, and things such as these need to be considered carefully. I would not expect a child like you to understand. It has to do with medicinal remedies, and, as the medic, it is my duty to consider all scenarios and arrive at the appropriate conclusions. I am currently engaged in a battle of wits against the printers of these labels, and-"
"If it's a battle of wits, you already lost," Sasuke drawled, before tossing the box in the moron's shocked face. "Buy that, and let's go."
The Genin released a bewildered gasp, clearly taken aback, and, as if on cue, the Sannin arrived on their aisle.
"Orochimaru-sama!" Kabuto rounded on his master. "I am trying to explain to Sasuke-kun why this purchase is so important, and why it takes a particular level of concentration, but he is behaving like a child. Always so rude and impatient!"
"Kabuto," Orochimaru's mouth turned in that amused smile once more, "no one has patience quite like you."
The medic's expression shifted to one of self-satisfaction, and he took his master's remark with a pleasant smile. "That's very true," he agreed.
"Yes, it is. Now, make your purchases," the older shinobi instructed, before immediately walking past the two of them. "Sasuke-kun and I will go on ahead. You can catch up."
The smirk returned to Sasuke's mouth at the befuddled look on Kabuto's face, and he focused a pointed look on the idiot.
"You heard Orochimaru-sama," the Uchiha stressed the ending, and Kabuto's glare was enough to satisfy. However, when he proceeded to lift his middle finger and push his glasses up the bridge of his nose, the smirk widened and Sasuke released a quiet grunt.
"Hn."
Always such a dumbass.
He turned and followed Orochimaru out of the shop, grabbing the bags on his way out, and then wincing slightly at the beating sunlight. Summer was always such an insufferable season. Whatever, it was only another month before the onset of autumn, and that was always a welcome reprieve from this stupid heat.
One year and two months…
As Sasuke walked alongside the Snake Master, he again repeated this in his head, reminding himself how much time he had left. How much time there was to train. How much time he had to remain the Sannin's pupil and put up with these wasteful endeavors. How much time he had left before he could finally face Itachi again. And defeat him once and for all.
He had been training, nonstop, for almost two years, now. Orochimaru had begun to send him on random missions, odd jobs here and there, usually involving the retrieval of escaped prisoners, though on rare occasions he sent Sasuke to collect specific targets for him. And, of course…sometimes, he sent him on Kabuto's ridiculous quests, to collect some stupid plant, and once he had even sent him along with the moronic medic because, apparently, the man could haggle money rather well, but he was not much of a threat to the sort of people he often dealt with.
Sasuke internally smirked at the thought. Leave it to Kabuto to get himself in over his head.
Of course, it was annoying, actually rescuing that idiot's worthless ass, but just the fact that he could hold that over him was a satisfying feeling. Kicks from that dumbass had remained just as frequent, but he had actually managed to stop him a few times without any mention of Orochimaru, by simply activating his Sharingan and sending him through a brief illusion. The Genin had proceeded to lecture him thoroughly afterwards, but, when the case had been brought to Orochimaru, the Sannin had only chuckled and informed Kabuto that he was still sweating.
His Sharingan was actually developing rather well, and it was taking less and less chakra to keep it activated for longer stretches of time. He now had the cursed seal under complete control and had taken to using it as an extra reserve of chakra, which, more than anything else, came in handy when using Chidori. Other than that, he had been trying to minimize his usage of the seal, preferring to rely on his own strength, rather than some questionable power given to him by the Snake Sannin. Not to say he would not utilize it when necessary. It was his power, after all.
As for a certain other power, the advanced technique Orochimaru had taken it upon himself to teach Sasuke, that was developing rather nicely, as well. It was tricky, utilizing the forces of nature already at hand rather than his own chakra, but, truth be told, once he had gotten the hang out of it, it was actually rather simple. And significantly less draining than any technique he had ever used. He had not quite mastered it yet, but he was close. Very close. And, though it was only good for one use in a given sitting…one use was, after all, all he needed. The effect was instantaneous, it was impossible to dodge, and, if he dedicated his chakra and perhaps even that of his opponents to heating the surrounding atmosphere, the match would be finished in a matter of minutes. All he would have to do when the storm began was drive the lightning straight through the bastard's skull.
The mere thought of it brought a visible smirk to the corner of the young shinobi's mouth. Uchiha Itachi, struck dead by the one thing his little brother had once feared most. The irony of it was almost unbearable. He could not possibly imagine a more fitting demise for that heartless bastard.
"Orochimaru-sama!"
And, that was all it took to shatter his train of thought.
The Sannin halted in his steps and glanced over his shoulder, that ever-amused expression plastered across his face. Sasuke resisted the urge to shake his head, proceeding to shift his eyes and catch a glimpse of their idiotic medic, who was running up to them, grocery bags in either hand.
"Kabuto," Orochimaru's jagged teeth were revealed in his grin. "Did you end up buying it, after all?"
"Well," the moron began, coming to a stop and not even pausing to catch his breath, though it was obvious he was winded. Clearly, giving his dear master this absurd explanation was more important. "As you know, I am well trained in the art of stealth, and because of this, I can pick it out quite easily in others."
Bullshit. But, of course, Kabuto was always lost in his delusions.
"With that being the case," here, the Genin released a quiet laugh to himself, "I knew they were trying to mask a faulty product behind those pleasant fallacies and attractive labels. When I realized that, I knew with utmost certainty that the buy was not worth the expense. No one can fool me, Orochimaru-sama."
"Such incomparable skills of deduction," Orochimaru's throaty chuckle sounded.
The imbecile accepted his master's praise with a self-satisfied smile, before hurrying forward and placing himself on the older shinobi's right side. He cast a slight glare in Sasuke's direction, but it was immediately replaced by that pleasant smile when he indulged in conversation with the Snake Master.
For some reason, Kabuto had adopted the ludicrous notion that Sasuke was trying to replace him as Orochimaru's right-hand man. Where he had ever come up with something so ridiculous was quite beyond the Uchiha's ability to comprehend. There really was no reasoning behind most thing's that moron did. But, because of these fears, the Genin had taken it upon himself to reassert his role at his master's side, taking it to a very literal level and insisting on always remaining on Orochimaru's right side, no matter the situation.
Of course, just for the sake of amusement, Sasuke had once pointed out that, from a different perspective, that of any observer, he was actually the one standing to the right of Orochimaru. This had sent the moron into quite the dilemma, and he had spent weeks trying to sort out a way in which no one could possibly mistake the Uchiha for his master's right hand subordinate. He had never reached a solution, but it was likely the matter had slipped his mind. After all, he was quite the forgetful fellow. Perhaps Sasuke would bring the issue to the surface again the next time he felt like messing with the idiot.
"…isn't that right, Sasuke-kun?"
The Uchiha turned his gaze only slightly to focus his bored stare on the medic. He really had no idea what sort of conversation the two had engaged in this time, and he did not particularly care, either. However, he was also not in the mood for another of Kabuto's obnoxious lectures about his rudeness. He had suffered quite enough of the imbecile's antics for one day, and he was growing more and more impatient to reach the hideout and get away from him.
Therefore, he proceeded to give a nonchalant shrug of his shoulders. It was a neutral response, one that should not call forth too much of a reaction.
"Precisely," Kabuto nodded, returning his dark eyes to his master, in that eager manner he sometimes did when he was pining for the older man's attention. "It's as I said. We've all missed that hideout. It is, after all, in an excellent location, and, now that the new facilities have been installed, an ideal spot both for your training and the relaxing bit of fresh air we've all been needing. Also, considering we only have a few weeks left of this summer weather, we might as well utilize the beach while we can."
Oh. The beach hideout again. This dumbass had been going on about that for months. How they needed to head back there again, how they needed to visit before the summer was over, how the training facilities had almost reached the final stages of completion.
Recently, and per request of their ever-thoughtful medic, the three had begun moving location every two weeks. They never stayed at a single hideout any longer than that, because, according to Kabuto, it would be too dangerous. They could not risk exposure. Therefore, every other Tuesday, they moved. It had actually become routine, at this point. Tuesdays, they moved. Wednesdays, they commenced training. Sundays, they went on those ridiculous walks which were, as the illustrious idiot put it, essential for everyone's health.
Yes, life itself had become routine. Days of the week had a designated purpose. And each day that did not, was dedicated to training. They moved, changed location, and no ties could be made anywhere they went. They always traveled light, they always moved within a period of 24 hours, and they never stayed at a single location any longer than two weeks. Sasuke had grown accustom to living on the bare minimum. The less he kept in one place, the less he would have to move or throw out when they changed to a new hideout. It actually made everything simpler, living with fewer attachments. And the routine of each day made suppressing any attachments that tried to resurface significantly easier.
Truth be told…it was kind of strange, going back there again. To the beach hideout. It had been over a year since the last time they had stayed, and, over the time that had elapsed, he had grown into a considerably different person. He had been weaker then. Both in his abilities and his constitution. In fact, it disgusted him, looking back at who he had been at the time. He had yet to even pick up a sword, and he had still been questioning his brother's motives for the murder of his family. He had been young and naïve, and time had taught him that more things were as they seemed than he had ever wanted to believe. His time with Orochimaru had taught him that, had shown him a glimpse into the mind of a person who was, indeed, truly heartless.
People like that existed in this damnable world, and he had woken himself from those childish fantasies. It would be easier, it was always easier, casting the blame somewhere else, trying to convince himself that there more was to everything, more behind Itachi's motives. To convince himself that his brother had not been deceiving himself and his entire clan for years, that he had not let himself be deceived.
But the simple fact was, this was not the truth.
Accepting that was the first step he had taken in casting those stupid idealistic thoughts aside. After that, it was a matter of pushing himself forward and pushing those damn memories further and further back, away from his conscious thought. The more he suppressed them, the easier it was to accept that his brother truly was nothing more than a heartless bastard who had deceived him and murdered his family. That was who Itachi was, and that was who Sasuke had taken it upon himself to kill.
Nothing else mattered.
"My humblest apologies, Orochimaru-sama."
The Sannin stared at his subordinate, his arms crossed in front of him and that amused grin never once leaving his face, and Kabuto stood once again to his right, one hand placed on his hip and the other inadvertently flicking the man off as he pushed his glasses up the brim of his nose. Sasuke stood to the other side of Orochimaru, a dull expression in place.
They had arrived at the hideout not moments ago, and the warden had run out to greet them the second they have arrived. It was instantly apparent that something was amiss. Honestly, the man had done a horrible job of concealing the fact. Not that they wouldn't have discovered the matter themselves as soon as they had actually walked inside, but the point remained. He could have at least put in a little effort. Instead, he had defaulted to groveling at his master's feet and spitting out an apology every other sentence.
Though, he had yet to get to his actual point.
"Daisuke-san," the medic addressed the man with a pleasant smile, lowering his hand to his side, "would it be too much trouble to ask you to stop with the digressions and tell us what it is you did to warrant so many apologies?"
The warden glanced between the three shinobi in front of him, before bowing his head in shame. "Orochimaru-sama," he began, his tone low and filled with remorse, "the prisoners…it's the prisoners."
A pause followed, and, when no further elaboration came, Orochimaru released a slight chuckle. It was not long before Kabuto joined him, and the Sannin fixed his serpent eyes on the terrified man in front of them. "Daisuke…what about the prisoners?"
"They have…," the warden bowed his head lower, "they have escaped, Orochimaru-sama. Every one of them. They broke out. They were all in a rampage, there was nothing I could do to stop them. It wasn't even…it couldn't have been half an hour ago." The man's voice quickened, he spoke in a rush, "They ran out, some could not even make it across the water. But they'd rather risk drowning than stay here. The others fled into the forest. I saw 26 of them drown, so that means 118 must have made it safely to the woods."
The silence fell once more, and Sasuke's onyx gaze shifted briefly to take in Orochimaru and his medic's pleasant smiles. It was almost eerie, how these types of situations affected them. They always found them to be profoundly intriguing, and nothing could break their amused smiles. For that matter, they were intrigued by quite a number of things. Things that the Uchiha could simply not understand.
Finally breaking the silence, Kabuto released a pleasant sigh. "Now then, Daisuke-san," he titled his head, "isn't that better?"
"B-better?" the man stammered.
"Better," the sadistic moron repeated, a small laugh forming. "With everything out in the open. No more secrets between us."
"I…," the warden shook his head, bowing again to the Snake Master. "I cannot begin to apologize enough, Orochimaru-sama. I would have pursued them myself, but I lack any tracking ability."
"So you do," Orochimaru agreed. "Kabuto, remind me, why did I appoint him as warden?"
The Genin looked to his master, the vindictive smile overtaking his countenance, and that all-too-familiar look forming in his eyes. "If memory serves me correctly, I believe it is because you needed him to overlook the construction of your training facilities."
"Are those facilities complete?" the Sannin probed, refocusing his yellow slits on the quivering man before them.
"They are, Orochimaru-sama!" he nodded his head vigorously. "I can attest to that personally! They were completed three weeks ago!"
"Three weeks," the older shinobi noted, and he gave a slight inclination of his head. "Excellent."
This man really was an idiot. Sasuke found it hard to even feel sympathy for him, with his current behavior. The one thing that could have saved his life was his continued usefulness, and he had just thrown that to the wind. It was apparent that he did not need to be in any position of leadership.
"Which direction were the prisoners last seen heading?" the imbecilic medic questioned the man.
Without a moment's hesitation, the warden pointed it out for them, and Kabuto awarded him a nod. Turning his back to him, the Genin proceeded to pull a small notebook out of his pocket and began jotting something down, most likely the direction so that he did not forget within the next ten seconds.
As he repocketed the book, Kabuto cast the man a smile and told him, "Thank you for your cooperation, Daisuke-san. It is much appreciated."
It was as if the man could sense his own fate. Things had finally snapped in place in that empty head of his, and he now looked to his master with pure terror in his eyes.
"It was a mistake, Orochimaru-sama!" he pleaded. "I am deeply sorry!"
"I understand, Daisuke," the Sannin assured him, his tongue extending from his mouth and his eyes widening a fraction.
"A mistake could happen to anyone," Kabuto piped in with a small laugh.
The warden lifted his eyes, but almost immediately bowed his head again, urging his master, "Forgive me, Orochimaru-sama."
…
"Forgive me, Sasuke."
His older brother was smiling down at him, extending two fingers and bringing them to rest firmly against the smaller boy's forehead.
"Next time, okay?"
…
The Uchiha's dark eyes narrowed, only a fraction, and he turned his gaze from the idiot in front of him. He did not care what happened to him anymore. The moron had already thrown his life away by being so damn careless, and Sasuke had lost any remaining sympathy, now that he had called that memory to the surface. He focused all his attention on pushing it away, forcing that stupid, calming smile to the back of his mind.
In the midst of this, however, he felt a sudden movement beside him, and when he turned to face the morons, he saw Orochimaru approaching the warden. Without a second's hesitation, the Sannin snatched the man by the arm and threw him off the side of the cliff. Sasuke's eyes widened slightly, as he saw the warden's brief moment of incomprehension, watched him fall, and then, with an abrupt thud, watched his useless body smash against the jagged rocks at the cliff's base. Blood seeped from every crevice of that broken form, but the sea washed it away, dispersing it in all directions until it faded completely, leaving no trace of the man's life.
"Well," Kabuto said from behind him, "that's that."
Both Orochimaru and his loyal subordinate burst into a morbid fit of laughter, and the Uchiha once again adopted his practiced façade, forcing any expression from his countenance and reclaiming his bored stance. It should not have surprised him. True, he had expected the Sannin to deal with the warden in a fatal manner, but he had not expected it to be so abrupt or even at the present time. But, he really should have been prepared for anything from that maniac. It really was a wonder that Orochimaru always somehow managed to surprise him.
"Sasuke-kun," the Snake Master turned his glowing eyes on the younger shinobi, and the Uchiha proceeded to rest his dull onyx stare on the man. "I have a new mission for you."
"You want me to retrieve the prisoners," Sasuke drawled, without any need for further elaboration.
Orochimaru released a soft chuckle, before his eyes widened and his snake tongue protruded between his sharp teeth. "Excellent, Sasuke-kun," he crooned fondly. "That is precisely what I had in mind. Now then, head in the direction Daisuke said they were last seen, and we will send someone after you before long to help you locate them all."
"Who are you sending?" the Uchiha questioned, narrowing his eyes slightly in concentration.
"Her name is Karin," the Genin answered from behind, and Sasuke resisted the urge to roll his eyes at the mere sound of the idiot's voice. "She is a particularly skilled sensor type, and we arranged for her to meet us here a week in advance. You see, she helps us in conducting experiments from time to time."
"She has a unique ability," Orochimaru mused, his eyes widening in enthrallment. With a chuckle, he closed his eyes momentarily, before reopening them and focusing his attention on the Uchiha once more. "She'll meet up with you in the hour. Or two. However long it takes her to get here. Head in the direction and wait for her arrival."
"In fact," Kabuto turned his vindictive smile on the younger shinobi, "it really doesn't matter if you bring the prisoners back alive or dead. We just can't have them running off telling anyone the location of our hideout. And, even if they're dead, we can still utilize their corpses."
"An excellent point, Kabuto," the Snake Master licked his elongated tongue along the surface of his lips. "As always."
"Fine," Sasuke replied dryly.
With that, he took his leave of the pair of idiots and focused his chakra at his soles, jumping from the cliff to the beach below and then hurrying across the water. He did not want to hear any more from either of them. He had actually been looking forward to relaxing when they reached this hideout, and, within the course of a few minutes, he had already witnessed another killing and had been given a retrieval mission to round up over 100 escaped prisoners. On top of that, he had to deal with whoever this girl was those two were sending after him. It really was unlikely that she would prove to be very helpful.
They rarely were.
It did not take long for the Uchiha to reach the forest, and, upon his entrance, the sloppy trail of the prisoners was easy to detect. With a smirk, he pushed himself off the ground and onto a low-hanging branch in a nearby tree, before proceeding to peruse the vicinity with his eyes. There were traces of the chaotic attempt at fleeing in all directions, and he shook his head. It seemed they had split up. In a situation like this, perhaps a sensor type would actually come in handy. With a nod, he pushed off the branch and continued his pursuit, taking to the direction it seemed the highest number of prisoners had fled.
The thin streams of sunlight were slowly dimming, and the vibrant green of the forest was fading to an orange hue, reflecting the change in the overhanging sky. The shroud of night would soon fall, making it more difficult to pick up on the distinct signs of disturbance in forest life. Whoever that damn associate of Orochimaru's was, she needed to hurry. Then again, she could prove useless. He really shouldn't expect himself to be able to rely on her.
As he focused the chakra and pushed off the nearest branch, jumping to the next tree, his dark eyes wandered to the forest floor, and he could feel his mind wandering. It was nothing he felt any particular aversion to, however, and he therefore did not immediately put up any protection against the new infiltration of thought. And after all, in the lethargic task of tracking these prisoners, it was not as though it required his full, immediate attention.
Oh, what the hell…
…
Sunlight streamed in through the foliage overhead, hitting the ground in sharp, fragmented patches. Trees past out of the peripheral vision at a steady, leisurely pace, as two children walked quietly under the shade of the trees. The boy loosened his grip on the kunai in hand, letting it hang limply at his side, while the girl resituated her hold on the large book she carried.
"Hey, Sasuke?" the girl turned her curious eyes on the child beside her.
"What?" he asked in an uninterested tone. The sluggishness of the day was weighing on him, and he had grown rather bored of their search.
With a slight shrug, she asked, "What are your parents like?"
"My parents?" at this, Sasuke lifted his black irises from the ground to fix them on the girl, and he arched a curious brow. "Why?"
"Just wondering," Tamaki answered with a small smile. "I've met your mom before, but I was just curious what you have to say about them both. I don't really remember much about mine."
"Oh. Well…," the boy's eyes wandered in thought, before he replied, "they're very different from each other. Kaa-san is always around for everything, but Tou-san works a lot so he's kept pretty busy. Kaa-san's always been…hm…inspiring. No matter what, she always really helpful and encourages me. Tou-san..."
Sasuke's stare fell to the ground once more, and he furrowed his brow. His father had never congratulated him for anything, and the only thing he really ever inspired was a feeling of inadequacy, especially compared to his brother. His relationship with his father was nothing like his mother. In fact, one could even say they were the exact opposite. They could not be more different.
However, when he glanced over at Tamaki and noticed the worried look overtaking her expression, he immediately lifted his head and put on a matter-of-fact tone.
"Tou-san has higher expectations," he informed her. "He won't settle for anything but the very best, and that's exactly what I'm going to be. He makes me try my hardest every time. Kaa-san is pretty upfront about her feelings, but she says Tou-san is more reserved with his, because…"
Here, Sasuke lowered his voice and leaned closer to Tamaki, fighting the laugh as he whispered, "…he gets kind of awkward sometimes. He's pretty grumpy."
The small girl hid her giggle behind her hand, and her brown eyes lit up as she turned away from him.
Sasuke did not bother fighting the laugh any longer, and he returned his gaze to face forward. Perhaps his father acted the way he did on purpose. After all, it did always compel Sasuke to try harder, to catch up to his brother, to finally be able to impress their father. Maybe it wasn't always as bad as he thought.
"Your dad sounds funny," Tamaki noted, turning back to him with a grin.
"Yeah, he is sometimes," the young Uchiha replied with a slight inclination of his head. "One time, Nii-san and I stayed up later than we were supposed to, and Tou-san woke up, so we hid from him in the bathroom so we wouldn't get in trouble. It was really hard to stop laughing."
"That sounds like fun," Tamaki giggled again, but her eyes widened suddenly. "Did he find you?"
"No," a proud smirk formed on the boy's face. "Nii-san's always the best at hiding."
The two continued in an easy silence after that, both smiling and walking beside each other as the patches of sunlight grew fewer and the color of the forest began darkening. They did not even notice the gradual change until Tamaki suddenly gasped.
"Sasuke," she fixed her frightened stare on him. "It…it's getting pretty late."
"Yeah," the child's onyx gaze inspected the area in one sweep, before he turned in his path and motioned to her. "We should probably head back."
As they took the trail back the way they had come, Sasuke could already feel the disappointment beginning to stir in him. He had wanted to catch this cat today, to go home and show Itachi the new paw print, but tracking him had proven a rather troublesome task, and they had spent the entirety of the day searching without any luck. As he reached into the pouch at his side and stowed the kunai away, his lips jutted out in a slight pout.
"It's okay, Sasuke," he heard Tamaki's reassuring voice beside him. "We'll catch him tomorrow. For sure!"
He nodded his head, but he could not full-heartedly agree with her. After all, there was no telling how long it would take to find him. If they found him at all. He had thought those very same words when he had set out that morning, that he would definitely catch him today, but he had been wrong.
They trudged through the ever-darkening forest, the silence now falling to an uneasy one, and Tamaki inched closer to the boy beside her. When they heard a loud snap behind them, indicative of that of a tree branch, Sasuke whipped around, and she thrust out her hand and grabbed his arm, hiding herself behind him.
Glowing eyes.
They were met with glowing eyes, not ten feet from them, and the young Uchiha's dark eyes widened at the realization. Slowly, cautiously, he reached his hand into his pouch, grasped the kunai and gave Tamaki's arm a slight nudge with his free hand.
The reaction was instantaneous. Without a moment's hesitation, she jumped to the side, hiding herself behind a large tree, as Sasuke pulled the kunai out and managed to dodge just in time before the lion lunged at him. He steadied his footing, tightening his hold on the weapon as he watched the lion attempt a recovery from its last attack. The Uchiha took his opening, dashing forward quickly and leaping into the air, before landing atop the startled creature's back. It immediately lunged again, but it stopped short in attempt to throw its unwelcome passenger off. But Sasuke held fast.
In one swift movement, he retrieved six more kunai from his pouch, threw them to the ground in opposite directions, and then leapt from the lion's back. The animal turned, its sharp claws extending, but the child lifted his kunai and blocked the attack. When he landed, he tightened the string, and the cat was instantly rendered immobile, pulled to the ground from six sides.
Sasuke smirked, his chin raising just a fraction in pride, before he glanced over his shoulder.
"Tamaki!" he called, and her head popped out from behind the tree. "Bring the book."
An excited smile overtook the girl's countenance, and she abandoned her hiding place as she rushed over to him. "Sasuke, you did it!"
…
He came to a stop, his dark eyes fixed blankly in front of him. Night had fallen, and the trail had all but vanished from his field of vision. Following the prisoners any further would be difficult. To think, there had actually been a point when tracking a single ninja cat had been a challenge for him. The mere thought was almost laughable. Tamaki had always been so worried about him, she had been concerned with his abilities each and every time, but each time he had proven how strong he was.
It made him wonder how she would react to him, now.
Just then, Sasuke heard a slight movement behind him, a subtle rustle of leaves in the tree directly behind him, but he did not move. He did not even turn his gaze. If it was an enemy, he would wait for the attack, allowing the person to believe they had the upper hand in surprise. The sound had been quite faint, after all, and it was likely whoever it was still believed himself undetected.
Not a moment later, she revealed herself to him, "Orochimaru-sama sent me to give you support, Uchiha Sasuke."
So, it was the sensor shinobi. She had certainly taken her time getting to him. Then again, perhaps Orochimaru and Kabuto were to blame for that fact. It really was difficult to say for certain. He was unsure how much information the two had given her, so it would make things easier if he just told her the details himself.
"Two hours ago," he began dryly, "118 test subjects broke out of the hideout." Lifting his head a fraction and trying to catch any sign of the trail, he mused, "Given the time frame, it's likely that they're still in the forest."
"It's my understanding that the mission was to capture them, dead or alive," the woman, who he recalled was named Karin, stated firmly.
Sasuke did not respond. Truth be told, he had no intention of killing any of them. Orochimaru's little cronies killed to their hearts' content, and, in biding his time to blatantly oppose the man, the least Sasuke could do was stand in their way whenever the opportunity presented itself. He had decided to bide his time, but he refused to follow in that snake bastard's footsteps.
Or the steps of his brother.
A life meant nothing to Itachi. He killed anyone who stood in his way, and even those who did not, those who had done absolutely nothing to him, and he did not give it a second thought. Sasuke would never allow himself to become like that man. Therefore, he would not take the life of any of these innocent prisoners, who had done nothing but find themselves in the most inconvenient clutches of the Sannin.
Finally, the Uchiha drawled, "Yeah."
"So then," Karin declared, "let us begin."
At that, Sasuke turned his head, glancing over his shoulder at the kunoichi as confusion overtook his countenance. He was curious to see how this one's power worked. She was a woman of small stature, with vibrant red hair and glasses, and she wore the necessary purple, as did every associate of Orochimaru's. After returning his gaze for a brief moment, the woman closed her eyes.
He expected something to happen, but it didn't. She just…stood there. Was this her idea of beginning the search?
However, not a moment later, she opened her eyes and said simply, "Found them."
Sasuke's eyes widened slightly in surprise. Already? She had found all of them? That was…fast.
The kunoichi titled her head to the right and informed him in her harsh tone, "I'll take care of the closest ones. One is back 50 meters. Four are in front at ten o'clock."
That was surprisingly detailed.
However, he did not have time to marvel at her ability any further. She would take it upon herself to eliminate the targets, and he could not have that. Therefore, without a moment's hesitation, he immediately kicked off the tree limb and pushed himself at a slight angle toward the left. As he drew closer, he could see the signs of disturbance in a particular tree, and he came upon the first escapee with no trouble at all. He gathered chakra at his knuckles and knocked the man unconscious, before continuing forward and bestowing the same treatment upon the next three prisoners, who stared at him in shock.
As they each made a thud against the forest floor, Sasuke kicked off the branch and jumped past Karin, who was staring down at the display with wide eyes and her mouth agape. It was a look that vaguely reminded him of Kabuto, and he had to withhold the smirk. Exactly 50 meters behind her, he could see the faint outline of someone hiding behind a bushel of leaves, and he proceeded to knock him unconscious as well. The man fell from the tree with a grunt, hitting the ground before he even knew what hit him.
The Uchiha glanced over his shoulder, where he saw Karin staring at him, her hand resting against the side of the tree as if to balance herself.
"Can you keep up?" he asked the woman dryly, still doubtful of her abilities.
She held out her hands deliberately, insisting, "It's my mission, you know."
Is that what Orochimaru had told her? These idiots were all so naïve, they believed anything their master told them, and carried out his orders with an eager bounce in their step. It was revolting. Besides, he did not particularly care whether it was assigned as her mission or not, he was not about to let her unleash her abilities on these unfortunate souls.
"Karin," he addressed the kunoichi, "act as my eyes."
That seemed to set her over the edge.
"Don't tell me what to do!" she snapped, her hand raised in a fist.
Nevertheless, she proceeded to close her eyes, and he could tell she was again scanning the area. It really was an interesting and unique skill she possessed. He had never seen anything quite like it, and it was rather impressive. He had not expected that from one of Orochimaru's disciples.
"Three are located at 1:30…," she informed him, her tone noticeably calmer. "From there, five more are preparing to ambush from 9 o'clock."
Sasuke instantly launched himself from the tree, and he could hear her gasp from behind him. She followed impatiently, and he had to resist the urge to roll his eyes. This woman was certainly a cocky one, and she did not seem too keen on the idea of him taking charge. Was she trying to prove herself for some reason?
He spotted the prisoner, his back turned unsuspectingly, and when he landed beside him, the man barely had time to turn before Sasuke thrust his fist into his gut. He slid from the branch, unconscious, and the Uchiha hopped down to the forest floor before he even hit the ground. He could see another prisoner's head sticking out from behind a bush, and the other a few feet away, standing atop a low-hanging branch.
They were not the best at hiding. Clearly, they had not put much thought into this escape plan of theirs.
He rushed forward quickly and jabbed his fist into the nearest man's stomach, before jumping to the tree limb and rendering the next man unconscious as well. This one actually released a high-pitched scream, and Sasuke quickly stepped back and let him fall to the ground, hoping he had not given away his position.
9 o'clock.
He soared through the treetops and met the oncoming ambush. Well, what their idea of an ambush was, at least. It was pathetic. But then, he found it hard to hold these terrible strategies against them. He had seen the condition of Orochimaru's test subjects on multiple occasions, and he knew how they were treated. They were all huddled together in cramped cells, fed miniscule portions twice a week, their chakra and strength depleted, and they were never given the opportunity to recuperate. Right now, they were running on nothing but fear and adrenaline.
And rightly so. If he was in their position, he would be just as eager to escape, would lose his head in his desperation, with the chance of freedom so close at hand. It was almost tragic, what he was preventing. But, if he was not carrying it out, someone else would, and he was not powerful enough to put a stop to it just yet. Ironically, the one thing that would give him enough power was completing missions for that snake bastard. Missions very much like this one.
He and Karin continued the process for what felt like hours, a hindrance arising at each pause. Each time he asked her to detect the next set of prisoners, she felt a need to bicker with him, to reassert her authority. Perhaps she was one of the cronies who pined after the position of becoming Orochimaru's next vessel. It was very likely. That would make him the immediate competition.
A group of three was clustered together on one branch, and the Uchiha dashed forward, throwing his fist at each, until they all dropped to the ground below. He waited for the kunoichi's arrival, so they could continue, but it took her a few minutes. He had been moving too quickly for her again.
Finally, Karin landed behind Sasuke, her back to him, and he asked, "How much?"
"That last one was eighty-four," she informed him simply. However, before he could instruct her to track down the remaining test subjects, the woman titled her head to glance over her shoulder and addressed him, "Sasuke?"
He shifted his onyx gaze to meets hers, a questioning look in his eyes. Her tone was inquisitive. Different than it had been before.
"Why didn't you kill them?" she asked.
Well, that was certainly not something he was going to disclose to this woman. He hardly thought someone like her would even understand, and even if she did, it was none of her concern. Therefore, he remained silent, maintaining that expressionless demeanor, and he simply stared at her, waiting for her to let the matter rest.
Of course, instead, she just made another comment, "You're too laid back."
Sasuke had to resist the glare he was tempted to give her. He hesitated a moment, before stating dryly, "There's only one man that I wish to kill."
Her eyes widened in surprise, and she turned to face him, her mouth falling open in a gape. Her entire bearing had changed. It was almost as if she was…gawking at him. She slowly stepped toward him, and Sasuke instinctively backed away from her approach, and, though it was dark, he noticed a slight flush to her cheeks. Pressing her eyes shut, she folded one hand around the other, as if she was hugging the air, and the Uchiha arched a confused brow at this display. Something was seriously wrong with this girl.
He heard a rustle overhead, however, and his head shot up. In the time they had been talking, four prisoners had taken the opportunity and prepared an ambush. They were hanging from the branches of a nearby tree, several meets above them. Sasuke's eyes darted back to the kunoichi, but she was still in that weird stupor.
"Karin," he said, in the hopes that it would grab her attention, and she snapped out of it with an astonished grunt.
Gritting his teeth, Sasuke pushed himself from the branch and met the four men in combat midair. He punched the first squarely in the face, and transformed a turn into a hard kick to the second. He did not hit the third, because the last man was hard on his heels, only managing to dodge them both, but he threw him off balance enough that he would not be able to catch himself before he landed on the ground. He then dived through the air at the fourth men and smacked him against the back of the head. He then steadied himself and landed on a nearby tree.
However, as that man fell, he collided against Karin, who was still gawking up at Sasuke, too distracted to move in time, and she lost her footing, falling from the treetops as well. That was when Sasuke noticed that the third prisoner had recovered, and he now held a knife at the ready, his eyes set on the falling woman.
"Karin!" Sasuke exclaimed, jumping from the tree and diving after her.
He met her mid-fall, wrapping his arms around her and swiftly drawing his sword from its sheath. He sliced it against the man's shoulder, using the force of the impact to push him and Karin back several yards from the spray of blood, and he landed easily. The strange woman stared at the fallen man with widened eyes for a moment, her hand still held firmly against Sasuke's chest, before turning her eyes on her rescuer.
"You did that…for me?" she asked in a captivated voice, sliding her hand onto his shoulder and staring up at him in awe.
"If I were to lose you, it would become difficult to apprehend all of them," the shinobi explained disinterestedly.
Of course, he would not have needed to do it at all if she had been paying more attention. In fact, it was the same behavior she had now that had caused all this trouble. She quickly pushed away from him, however, her brow lowered angrily and the flush creeping back over her face.
Turning her back to him and placing her hand firmly on her hip, Karin snapped, "I know that!"
Fighting the smirk and keeping his stare fixed forward, Sasuke noted that there were definitely similarities between this woman and a certain medic. However, there was a distinct difference in their abilities, and Karin was considerably more useful than Kabuto had ever been to him.
When she continued to remain silent, he turned his dark eyes to rest on her once more, and he realized that she had been staring at him again. He could not quite place the reason behind it. But then, now that he thought of it, for some reason, he had always had this effect on girls. It was not any different, really, than it had always been.
Arching a brow, the Uchiha pressed, "The others?"
The prisoners were being rounded up, Kabuto thankfully absent from his presence as the moron led the test subjects back into the hideout and to their appropriate cells, tallying the numbers and making sure they had all been accounted for. Sasuke and Karin were standing beside each other on the beach, facing Orochimaru, who was marveling over their handiwork.
"Excellently performed," he complimented, his glowing eyes wide in fascination. "Every prisoner retrieved, and not a single one of them fatally wounded. I would expect nothing less from you."
"Of course, Orochimaru-sama," Karin replied firmly, her hand on her hip. "Though, I was under the impression that this was my mission. Sasuke tried to take charge the second I arrived."
The Sannin released an amused chuckle, fixing his eyes on the shinobi in question and running his tongue along the surface of his lips. "I would expect nothing less from our dear Sasuke-kun."
Sasuke narrowed his eyes, but otherwise offered no reaction. Sometimes, he did not know how much Orochimaru really knew. So often, the man seemed like he knew everything. But then, he sometimes did that when he really had no idea what was going on. It was just the way he always acted, no matter what. Yet…even so, more often than not, he knew something that you did not want him to know.
"Have you decided, then?" Karin was currently asking her master.
"I have," Orochimaru gave a slight inclination of his head, that obsessed look fading to complacency as he casually crossed his arms in front of him. "Karin, I am appointing you warden of this hideout. All others have been killed, and the head warden has recently retired," he informed her with a grin. "But I know, because it's you, you can manage on your own."
Adjusting her glasses, the woman quickly assured him, "You can put your faith in me, Orochimaru-sama."
"And I do," the older shinobi replied.
So, that's what this had all been about. This was who she had wanted to impress on the mission, why she had tried so fervently to take charge. She had wanted to use this opportunity to prove to Orochimaru how trustworthy she was, someone worthy of the position as warden. Just from what Sasuke had seen, she was a considerably intelligent woman, with a rare and useful ability, and she could hold her own rather well…when she wasn't lost in that weird daydreaming of hers. She was more accomplished than most of Orochimaru's subordinates, and actually had fair reason to assume herself worthy of such a position.
Of course, the fact that she wanted it so badly made the Uchiha wonder how loyal she was to the Snake Sannin.
"Thank you for this honor," Karin told the older man. "I accept it, wholeheartedly."
"Yes, I thought you might," the Snake Master returned simply. "Now then, it's been a long day, and I believe we could all do with one of Kabuto's meals and a decent night's rest."
A strange look came over Karin's face, then. Her eyes narrowed a fraction, and she pursed her lips, but she nevertheless offered a nod of her head. A small smirk forming at the corner of his mouth, Sasuke realized that she was just as disgusted by the idiot's meals as he was. As the two followed Orochimaru through the hideout entrance, the Uchiha continued to observe the young kunoichi.
She was an unusual person, there was no denying that, but, compared to some of the people he had met during his time with Orochimaru, she was actually considerably normal. She did jump between moods, and it seemed like everything about her changed with a particularly mode she was in. Even the way she spoke would differ, changing to a harsh, commanding tone when she was trying to assert her authority, and then an odd, girly one when she entered those strange dazes of hers. But, at the very least, she did not seem insane.
And, if she wasn't too loyal to Orochimaru…she just might come in handy…