Here's chapter two!

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A Good Idea

"You know, Sasuke-kun," Orochimaru intones. "When I offered to let you come here and apprentice under me, I don't recall saying you could bring a . . . companion."

Sasuke and Sakura arrived an hour ago at Orochimaru's dingy underground lair. The air is musty and strangely hot, though the patterned stone walls are cool to the touch.

Sasuke glares up at the sannin, not one to be intimidated. "I don't recall an offer so much as I recall being bitten in the neck by a snake," he remarks, sneering.

Orochimaru's eyes take on an amused glint, and he relents as it's clearly pointless to deliberate on this any further with the angry young boy. "Fine, but don't expect to spend all your time with her. I don't want the girl hanging around and distracting you. She'll need to pull her own weight, so if he finds it acceptable, Kabuto will train her."

From behind his master, the bespectacled man agrees with a slight nod of the head. "Of course, Orochimaru-sama."

For the hundredth time, Sasuke wonders if it was such a good idea to bring Sakura along. After all, she has distracted him in the past and she is awfully annoying. Besides, he may only be thirteen, but he understands the ramifications that spending too much time with a member of the opposite sex may have.

Not that he'd let anything—much less a girl—get in the way of his goal.

"Anyhow," Orochimaru continues, "I'll let you settle in for the night as I understand you had some . . . difficulty getting here. Training will start tomorrow at dawn." With that, the older rogue nin turns away, signaling the end of the conversation.

Sasuke makes his way out of Orochimaru's office, finding Sakura waiting in the hall where he'd left her. Kabuto follows him out of the room and leads them to their quarters. The two young ninjas follow Kabuto down dark, winding passageways that become increasingly confusing as they go. They stop upon reaching adjacent rooms. He opens up the first one and ushers Sakura inside.

As Kabuto closes the door behind her, she casts one last look at Sasuke. Her eyes are wide with quiet fear, but her brow is furrowed in determination. It's an expression he's grown accustomed to seeing on her, and he finds that it mitigates some of the pressure that'd been growing in his chest since they arrived at the hideout. He continues staring at the door after it's shut, tearing himself away only when Kabuto draws his attention by opening the door to his room.

As he lays in bed later that night, unable to sleep, he draws what comfort he can from the quiet, steady chakra signature of the sleeping girl on the other side of the wall.

Training with Orochimaru is ceaseless, grueling work, but that's expected. It's what Sasuke signed on for—what he wanted—after all. He knows getting strong enough to take down his brother won't be without its share of blood, sweat, and tears. No pain, no gain, as they say.

He only wishes it wasn't so utterly disturbing at times. He's never been fond of senseless killing—something his new master attributes to his upbringing in Konoha. Unluckily for him, Orochimaru partakes in it all the time. Whether on a mission or in his lab, the old sannin has no qualms about taking a life. Thus far, Sasuke has managed to avoid such carnage, but he suspects it's only a matter of time.

There was one horrifying instance in particular that took place a few months after they'd arrived. Kabuto had been training Sakura in medical ninjutsu for some time, and she'd been making good progress. In order to evaluate her skills, Orochimaru had gutted of one of his many test subjects and ordered her to heal the man before he died. She was so nervous that she'd failed, so he'd moved onto another poor soul and made her try it again. And again, and again, and again. When she'd finally got it right, he just slit the throat of the woman she'd healed. The blood had splattered all over her face and clothes as she was made to stand there and watch. Orochimaru claimed that other medical nins were too soft and always attempt to save everyone, even their enemies. He said she'd need to be able to stand by and let people die if he so wished.

For the millionth time, Sasuke wonders if it was such a good idea to bring Sakura along.

He goes to see Sakura a few days after the incident in the lab. He's noticed that her hair has lost its luster and the skin around her eyes is darkening, and suspects that she's stopped taking care of herself. He enters her room an hour past midnight to find her sitting in her sleep clothes in the corner. She doesn't turn to greet him. He's not sure if she's ignoring him or simply so out of it that she didn't even notice his entrance.

"Sakura," he utters harshly, coming up behind her. Her head snaps up to look at him, eyes wide as though she's been caught doing something she shouldn't be. He glances down at what she has in front of her to find a blank piece of parchment and a capped pen. "What are you doing?"

"Nothing," she sighs. Almost belatedly, she rolls up the sheet of paper and stows her items away. "Is there something you want, Sasuke-kun," she asks, standing.

"Yes." He came to inquire about her wellbeing, after all. Yet, rather than asking if she's alright, he blurts out, "You look terrible."

Her eyes widen even more, if possible. "Oh," she mumbles, reaching up to straighten out her hair. She almost looks startled, which is understandable, Sasuke supposes. She certainly hadn't been anticipating his company, so why would she expect to be suddenly insulted?

"You . . . look unwell," he elaborates.

"Oh," she repeats, voice trembling and eyes cast to the floor. "I might be having trouble acclimating to this place. Orochimaru-sama is just so . . . creepy, and Kabuto-san is really mean sometimes. Everything's super stressful and I—"

Abruptly, her eyes jump up to meet his. "Not that I don't know how important it is that we're here, Sasuke-kun," she rambles. "Our skills have definitely improved, you especially, and—"

Using his most soothing tone, he stops her. "Sakura, it's alright. This place is hard to get used to."

Visibly relieved, she nods and wipes at her watery eyes.

Sasuke knows she's under a lot of pressure, particularly because her presence here was unexpected and arguably unwanted. He also can't help but feel as though she's putting more strain on herself to not be a bother to him. He'd never realized how little of an effort he made to spend time with her until she'd stopped talking to him. This is the first time they've spoken in over three months. "You should go to sleep," he urges, nodding towards her bed. She accedes, padding across the room and slipping under the covers.

Satisfied, he turns to leave, but the sound of her voice stops him. "Sasuke-kun?" He doesn't respond, but once she realizes she has his attention, she continues. "Can you stay until I fall asleep?"

She sounds utterly hesitant, as though she's dreading certain rejection. He tells himself it's for that reason alone that he agrees, coming to sit by her pillow. He remains there for a long while, focusing on the sound of her breathing.

Sasuke wakes up a few hours later to find himself lying next to Sakura. He lurches upward, leaning on his elbow and praying she doesn't startle awake at his sudden movement. Luckily, she slumbers on, completely unaware of his presence.

Sakura, he can't help but think as he gazes down at her, is a very beautiful girl.

He leaves before she wakes up.