Chaaaaah…I'm updating. O_o
Ch. 15
Time seemed to slow as Orochimaru moved, and the scythe continued its deadly curve. The air was suddenly ripe with foreboding. Heart pounding, the snake nin looked up at the immortal. The scythe wound through the air and found its way back into Hidan's hands. The blade began its ascent to his mouth. With rising panic, Orochimaru caught himself as he fell back. He couldn't afford to waste time. Maybe if he could just knock it from Hidan's hands?
He kicked off the ground and flew at Hidan. The Akatsuki's eyes widened, but he quickly got over his surprise. Orochimaru swiped, scythe within reach. Kusanagi struck the edge forcefully, but Hidan held onto it. Hurriedly, he pulled it away from the sannin. He carried it out of Orochimaru's reach, enjoying the pained look on his face. This was the best way to exact his revenge. His tongue quickly travelled along the blade, licking off the metallic fluid with practised ease.
As if by instinct, Orochimaru sprang, landing a short distance away, his features contorted bitterly. The scythe hadn't stopped moving. It tore at Hidan's exposed arm, staining it red. It dripped, and Hidan's foot caught it, smearing it on the floor into a faithful replica of his rosary. Orochimaru surveyed it with an odd look, mind working fervently on another strategy.
Hidan was thoroughly enjoying every minute of this. Orochimaru was stumped, he could tell. The curse mark's leftover adrenaline still working its way through his body, he twirled the scythe around until it pointed at his bare chest. His skin blackened, white marks standing out starkly, bright and clean, begging to be spoiled. It was white canvas, ready to be painted with blood. Brimming with anticipation, a few excited laughs escaped his mouth.
"You have no idea how long I've waited for this. And I'm gonna make it as excruciating as hell, just for you."
…
Kakuzu bounded down the corridors, straining his senses for any sign of life. Not far, not far…how damn far was 'not far'?! He sincerely hoped Sasori had killed that worm of a shinobi.
Endless amounts of lamps and infinite numbers of doors passed him. As he checked every corner, every fork in his path, and retraced his steps, his mind formed a plan of the area, and he began to see the layout of the architecture. His own path he named the main path, though there was little to distinguish it from the others except for a slightly broader width. The many different paths that led off this 'main' path were not dead-ending, as he had assumed, but in fact, each one rejoined the main path either further on or further back, and sometimes on the other side. He learned to ignore them, and concentrate on his chosen one. He couldn't imagine 'not far' being down one of the side tunnels.
He had barely begun to follow his plan when an end to the tunnel appeared on the edge of his vision. He immediately sped up, eager to end his time in the corridor. His feet pounded against the floor, all sense of stealth thrown to the side.
It took him longer than usual to hear someone approaching. That someone burst from a side path, light feet heading relentlessly for him.
He caught the small sound, and instantly stopped and leaped back. His attacker flew past, Kakuzu's eyes following him intently. An adolescent boy landed neatly in front of him, blocking his way. His clothes marked him as one of Orochimaru's closest, and Kakuzu readied himself. The child was most likely one of Orochimaru's latest prodigies.
The boy gave him a sideways look through a curtain of white, shoulder-length hair. His eyes were green and framed underneath with red marks. Two crimson spots sat just above his eyebrows. He fixed Kakuzu with a cold stare.
"I won't let you interrupt the ritual."
Kakuzu stared back, unfazed.
"Move, boy."
The strange child looked away. His hand travelled up to his shoulder, brushing the skin gently. As Kakuzu watched warily, threads already snaking their way out from his arms, the child suddenly thrust his hand in his shoulder. The skin around it ruptured and receded, and his hand curled into a fist. His grip turned his knuckles white. A moment later, he ripped out a long, thin, bloodied bone. As Kakuzu watched, tension building, his shoulder injury sealed up, leaving no trace of the deep wound. The boy brought the bone around to face the intruder, and looked up again.
"Orochimaru-sama's ritual is his life. I promised to protect that, at all costs. You can't pass."
"Hn."
Kakuzu's tone was one of disdain. Those sound ninja didn't know when to stop. He'd make this quick. Bones could be broken; especially when there was no skin or sinew to go through first. However, the boy's recovery rate made Kakuzu uneasy, it reminded him too much of Hidan's. One immortal was bad enough.
Kakuzu lunged forward, solidified fist hurtling towards the young shinobi. Fist met bone – and Kakuzu heard a satisfying crack. The boy's face remained blank, and Kakuzu' eyes widened. Glancing down, he saw the bone was still intact, except for a small crack that revealed itself as he pulled away.
"Surprised?"
Kakuzu glared at the young boy. The bone was out again, pointed directly at his chest.
"This is my kekkei genkai. Don't underestimate it."
Kakuzu dodged as the bone came his way again. The boy was tougher than he looked, he give him that. The bone whistled through the air, but the speed of the attack had left him plenty of time to side step away. He was being tested. Such an amateur trick. Careful not to reveal his true strength, Kakuzu blocked a few more jabs. The boy's attacks were cautious, and Kakuzu began to feel that the boy only meant to ward him off, and avoid killing.
But suddenly, his opponent stepped back and raised the bone high, summoning a great deal of chakra to his limbs. Kakuzu gave a start.
"Yanagi no mai! Willow dance!"
He snapped out of his mechanical blocking and threw himself back as the bone weapon stabbed at him from all angles. It seemed to multiply, long white swords filling the space before him, while the boy darted behind them, the conductor of this bizarre performance.
He was being pushed back; the boy's movements left no room for a counter attack. He avoided backing into any walls; he couldn't let himself get cornered-
Or could he?
He swerved to the side, narrowly avoiding a bone to the face. The boy followed, hesitating only briefly at Kakuzu's sudden change of tack.
It was an obvious trick, but the child seemed inexperienced in the area of cunning.
"Hah!"
Kakuzu dodged a particularly violent swipe. The boy was finally getting frustrated. He took the chance to back into the nearest wall, eyes on the flash of white travelling through the air,
Half a second later, the boy was at him. Kakuzu's eyes never left him; watching him carefully, predicting his next strike. The white flash diverted his attention, and locking onto it, he lurched to the side. The bone missed his unguarded side, and buried itself in the wall. Kakuzu acted quickly. The boy had to pause to pull out his weapon. In two brisk movements, Kakuzu shortened his distance and thrust a fist into the boy's chest. His opponent was unprepared. Kakuzu put all his force into the impact and soon heard several cracks. The child's eyes widened in shock. But something was wrong. Kakuzu frowned. The connection had come too early; something else had taken the hit. Both shinobi looked down, and Kakuzu felt a twinge of annoyance.
The boy's ribs were protruding from his chest cavity, protecting his vitals. Kakuzu noted with some consolidating satisfaction that several were broken. A shadow of a smirk flitted across the young one's face He pulled the bone completely out of the wall and stood back.
"Please, missing nin. Stop making this easy."
Kakuzu didn't reply.
The child fell into another stance, and raised his bone again – only to freeze, a strange, tortured look on his face as a sudden sharp pain engulfed his chest.
…
Grinning with blatant delight, Hidan plunged the scythe into his right thigh. Pain radiated from the torn muscle all through his body, and he shivered in pleasure as he caught Orochimaru's sharp intake of breath. He looked up slowly, putting more pressure on the injured leg as he did. He saw Orochimaru's features contort in barely disguised pain and his grin grew wider.
"And that's only the start… This pain is nothing compared to hitting an organ!"
Laughing hysterically, he tore the scythe out of his leg, blood spattering the grey floor.
Hidan was in ecstasy, he couldn't recall the last time he'd enjoyed a ritual quite this much. How many more wounds could he inflict before Orochimaru bled to death? He leered at his sacrifice, scythe swinging idly from his hands, smirking as Orochimaru's leg reddened.
The snake nin was too quiet. Time to make him scream. Hidan suddenly gripped the scythe handle, turning it towards himself again. It stayed barely inches from his black skin. Hidan's voice rang out with mock indecision.
"Hn… Where to go for now? Here? Or here?"
The scythe brushed the surface of his skin as he brought it up his arm.
"Or maybe you're looking for something a little stronger?"
He sniggered, scythe pointed at his gut. He waited, purposely drawing out the suspense.
Much to his indignation, Orochimaru looked up from his bleeding leg to Hidan and smiled.
"Ah, Hidan-kun. If you'd wanted to do this the hard way, you could have told me earlier."
Hidan's face dropped a little. This wasn't the reaction he wanted. He gripped the scythe handle harder, ready to bury it in his abdomen at the slightest provocation. Orochimaru didn't take his eyes off him.
"I have to admit, it is more fun this way… So stubborn. Your unwillingness to co-operate makes me want you even more."
"Damn it, you just don't take 'fuck off' as an answer do you?"
Would this guy ever stop patronising him?
He brandished his scythe.
"Give it up!"
The scythe passed right through his body, blades glistening wetly as they stuck out through the small of his back. Hidan and Orochimaru cried out, one in intense pain, the other in sadistic delight. Hidan jerked his head up to see the effect it had on his opponent – whether Orochimaru still had the gall or the strength to speak to him again.
He cursed loudly in undisguised fury.
Orochimaru's body fell heavily to the ground – but not before he had shed it, bursting out of the vestigial body's wide mouth, unharmed.
Hidan's rage at his failed attempt momentarily took second place to his confusion at seeing Orochimaru's new form. Hundreds of small white snakes replaced the trunk and limbs of Orochimaru's human body, and though his long, trailing black hair and piercing yellow eyes, framed in purple remained, his face took on a decidedly more snake-like appearance. Hidan didn't know it, but he was staring in disbelief at Orochimaru's real body.
Orochimaru's wounds had disappeared. Hidan cursed colourfully, and wrenched the scythe back out. Orochimaru gave no reaction other than to gather up his writhing coils and lift his serpentine head high, towering over the enraged shinobi below.
"Shit!"
The curse had been undone. Hidan gritted his teeth. He'd have to re-establish the connection. Twirling his scythe around experimentally, he wondered briefly whether Orochimaru even had blood while in this state. He soon dismissed the thought – it was just an animal now, sacrificing wasn't particularly necessary anymore. He'd just dice the thing, end of.
The snake was swaying, watching his every move, waiting for a chance to attack. Hidan clutched his scythe in both hands and sprinted at it. It lurched to the side, tail flicking, and he narrowly avoided being knocked to the ground. He jumped and landed behind it, whirling around to restart his attack. He moved in for the snake's blind spot – then a sharp scent laced his air supply, and his lungs burned. Poison! More fucking poison! Hidan covered his face and bounced back. He coughed, trying to get it out of his system, but it was too late, it had already entered his bloodstream. He grimaced as a tingling sensation spread from his chest outwards. It probably induced paralysis, though thankfully he could still move, as he demonstrated by dodging another sweep from the tail. It came back around, and he threw himself away as the tree-trunk sized white mass slammed into the concrete. Cursing, he realised the poison was slowing him down.
"The skin of the white snake produces a paralysing vapour on contact with the air."
It took Hidan a second or two to realise the voice was coming from the snake. Panting a little, he glared at it. The giant snake inclined its head towards him.
"It's useful for immobilising prey."
Hidan gave a small smirk.
"It's a bitch alright, but you're forgetting who you're dealing with."
He waved a hand casually in the huge snake's direction.
"I can move."
Orochimaru's characteristic low laugh rippled from the snake's white throat.
"True, but it succeeded in demobilising you long enough for the ritual to begin."
"Wha-?"
A sudden movement to his right made Hidan glance over his shoulder. He gave a start and turned around. Orochimaru's coils had been moving in wide circle the whole time, cutting off his escape routes. The air was rank with the smell of venom, and Hidan's movements grew more sluggish.
"Fucking pussy, using you poison-"
He held his scythe up, though his arm shook slightly from strain. Low laughter filled his living enclosure.
"It's too late for that, Hidan-kun!"
His voice grew dangerously soft.
"Your body…your immortality…are now mine."
His words sent a chill down Hidan's spine, and he opened his mouth to retaliate.
But all at once, his surroundings melted into a blur of colour, shapes that could only be snakes wove through the air, forming a new, otherworldly landscape. With rising uneasiness, he turned back to the main body just in time to see the giant head hurtle towards him, blocking everything else from view.
.. .. ..
The dialogue is cliché heaven. But if I'd typed what I'd originally written, the rating would've had to go up quite a bit. XD I think you can guess who Kakuzu-chan is fighting. Why? To be honest, to give him something to do before...stuff. :S