Chapter 6—Preparation
Orochimaru and Tsunade spent the next several hours in preparation for the mission they would soon be undertaking. Much of this time was spent in Orochimaru bringing Tsunade up to speed on the information he had gathered about Deidara, though Tsunade got the feeling he was really only telling her as much as he deemed necessary.
Unfortunately, even with their combined knowledge, there were far too many variables to form a solid plan. The only real course of action that could be decided upon at that point was when they would set out to track Deidara down.
It was dawn when they finished their preparations. They decided to leave that evening and take the time before then to rest. This was mostly upon Tsunade's insistence, for just as they were finalizing their plans, Orochimaru was overcome by a fit of coughing.
At first Tsunade only looked on piteously. The weak cough was something she had gotten used to as they were working on their plans, but she quickly saw that this was much worse. Orochimaru had been cut off midsentence and could not seem to recover as quickly as he previously had. Then, with a tremor, his body folded and he doubled over where he sat, his head bowed and his long hair falling forward, hiding his face. Tsunade was beside him almost instantly then, her arm around his shoulders as she tried to support him, but he would not, or could not, raise his head. She felt helpless and it was Orochimaru's fault. He had rejected her medical jutsu at every turn and for a moment she wondered bitterly if he enjoyed depriving her of the skill for which she was most well-known.
Who am I kidding? she thought. This is Orochimaru. Of course he enjoys it.
Tsunade hesitated a moment then pressed her palm to Orochimaru's back and let her chakra flow. He raised his head then, just slightly, and the yellow eyes glared at her from behind his dark hair. He tried to pull away but his body would not cooperate and the hand that had been covering his mouth went to the floor as he attempted to steady himself. When he moved it, a blurred handprint of blood was left on the smooth stone.
The moment Orochimaru was able to catch his breath, he knocked Tsunade's hand away.
"Why won't you let me help?" Tsunade demanded as Orochimaru began coughing again.
"It's not help," he answered, his voice ragged. "It is wasted effort. I told you–"
"This isn't a matter of preference, Orochimaru. You're dying. You need help and, as luck would have it, I'm the best damn medical ninja in the Land of Fire."
"It's nothing you can fix; surely you realize that."
Tsunade met his gaze and saw challenge in his eyes, but she did realize what was happening, and he was right. There was nothing she could do.
"You're almost out of time, aren't you?" she said quietly. "That body is rejecting you. There's no reversing that."
"I have Sasuke. I am not worried."
Tsunade stood and moved away from him. "…We should delay heading out and get some rest. We can leave this evening, when we're ready." She laid down by the far wall, her back to Orochimaru, and was quiet – either asleep or pretending to be.
Orochimaru looked down at the blood on his hand and for a moment questioned whether he should have left Kabuto in the dark about what he was doing. But the thought passed, and he lowered himself carefully to the floor to rest and recover before the mission began.