.
.
The slope he crests gives way to a vast expanse, and Kimimaro's pace begins to slow. His body aches. It makes sense when he realizes he's been moving on sheer willpower alone, and the exertions of subduing Anko a few hours earlier had taken its toll.
She had been crying. Blocking his attacks as best she could, one arm hanging uselessly by her side, she flipped and dodged and charged forward, movements desperate and wild and blinded with tears. It hurt him. Thinking back to it now, bowed against the cold and watching the plume of his breath spiraling into the cold air, Kimimaro knows there was no other way. She would have been killed, either by the nin of the Sound, who kept guard around the periphery, or by Orochimaru-sama himself. He thinks of the things he said to her, and knows full well that it was for the best - it would be easier for her if she hated him. He acted in the only way he could.
And then he wonders if she is okay.
For a long moment, Kimimaro stands at the cliff's edge, silently debating if he should turn back. Then he sets his jaw and turns, willing himself to keep moving forward.
xXx
.
Anko binds her ribs. Grimacing, she pulls the bandages tight, taking in a sharp breath as she tugs the bandages around her.
Everything hurts. Leaning heavily against a tree, Anko heaves and fumbles for her pack, her fingers clumsily reaching for the soldier pills she keeps for emergencies. Shakily, she pulls out the bottle and rips the cap off with her teeth. One pill rolls, a perfect sphere, and Anko crushes it between her teeth. Almost instantly, she can feel the warming chakra pulse through her body, coming over her in waves. It makes the pain almost bearable.
Anko empties her pack and takes stock of her belongings: four kunai, a few senbon. Several exploding tags and a half-torn summoning scroll. Her hand is contracted from the crush injury earlier, so she knows she will not be able to use her ninjutsu at all.
Anko concentrates her chakra into her good palm, and with effort, tries to heal her hand. The chakra wavers, then thins. Anko grits her teeth and pulls her hand away.
Orochimaru's camp is just below her. She leans heavily against the tree, silently watching the small spots of light flicker in the distance. She has surprise on her side, unless Kimimaro has warned them first.
Anko comes to a decision. She has already come this far. Gripping the tree, she stands, and in the dark, begins to descend the slope of the hill.
xXx
.
"Kimimaro-kun. You are alive." Kabuto seems genuinely surprised as Kimimaro pushes himself through the archway, the torchlight above them casting a muted orange glow.
"Where is the vessel?" Kimimaro asks. Kabuto smiles.
"He is already at the northern checkpoint. Orochimaru-sama has decreed that he start training immediately. We will rendezvous with them shortly."
"I see," Kimimaro says. He starts to cough, bending forward and pressing his hand to his mouth.
"You are at your limit, Kimimaro-kun," Kabuto says. "Don't you think it would be better if you'd just die?"
Kabuto's eyes are unreadable, obscured by the light reflecting off his glasses. Then Kabuto smiles. "I only mean to say you are pushing yourself for no reason," Kabuto says. "Orochimaru-sama has his vessel. You deserve your rest. And besides," and Kabuto leans forward, his voice dropping low. "We no longer have any reason to keep you alive."
"Hai," Kimimaro says. He coughs again.
"Orochimaru-sama would be disgusted to see such a pitiful sight," Kabuto says. He turns away, disinterested. "Perhaps you should leave now, before you disgrace yourself in his presence."
Kimimaro lowers his eyes.
"Orochimaru-sama has achieved his dream without me," Kimimaro says. "I only wish I could atone for my uselessness."
Kabuto stops, then turns. "I will let him know you're here," Kabuto says.
xXx
.
Kimimaro follows Kabuto down the winding hall, silently plotting the course for Anko. It has been more than a few hours since he last saw her; she should be conscious by now, and if heaven allows, on her way back to Konoha. He had only injured her enough so that she would not be able to fight; she should be able to travel just fine. Even if he has failed his purpose, he did succeed in one thing. He is thankful he was able to protect her.
Then he remembers the hurt in her eyes, and Kimimaro feels ashamed.
"What is it?" Kabuto asks. Kimimaro looks up.
"Nothing," Kimimaro says. He lowers his eyes. "I was just thinking of how I failed Orochimaru-sama. It makes me feel ashamed."
"Ah," Kabuto says. He seems to be taking an almost perverse glee in baiting him. "Do not beat yourself up, Kimimaro-kun. With that body of yours, it is to be expected that you cannot do as much."
"Hai," Kimimaro says. Almost reflexively he thinks back to Anko and how she had clung to him that night in the cold.
His chest tightens. It doesn't matter, he thinks. Soon he will die, and rid the world of his miserable existence. He takes a breath, then follows Kabuto resolutely down the hall.
xXx
.
Kunai whistle through the air, then strike the sentry in the back. The sentry falls, and quickly Anko crouches forward, lifting his katana from his side.
"Oi!"
Anko whirls. The katana flashes. Two strikes and the other sentries are down.
Anko slowly rises, the steel of the blade dripping with the other men's blood. She takes a breath, then traces the metal edge with her fingers.
Kabuto looks up. There are sounds of fighting outside. "What is this?" Kabuto says. Kimimaro's face pales.
Anko...
In the courtyard, Anko charges, her katana swinging. Stabs through the gut of one man, she whirls and slices through the next. Two men fall.
"Oi!" they say. "Stop her!"
Anko bursts into a run. She rounds a corner, and nearly skids to a stop when she sees the coterie of Sound nin begin to surround her.
"Teme..." Anko whips around, gritting her teeth and raising her katana. She's outnumbered, and her body is starting to give way.
"It looks like I have no choice," Anko says, and the cursed mark begins to glow on her shoulder.
The soldiers all pull back. Anko feels her skin begin to change, the whites of her eyes begin to blacken. Power flows through her, wrapping her like a vice, and the chakra builds like a coiled spring: Anko explodes. She is a burst of energy; she is fire, unstoppable, swinging and killing and a constant whir. There is the sound of contact, of muscle breaking through skin; bones crunch; men fall, and in the center of it all, Anko blurs.
And then Kabuto stands and claps his hands.
Anko looks up. Kabuto is standing at the doorway, a twisted smile on his face. Anko grits her teeth. "Teme." The cursed mark burns, and she springs forward -
And then there is nothing but pain.
Anko gasps and falls to her knees, the cursed mark receding back to her shoulder. Kabuto steps forward, grinning.
"This seal is incomplete," Kabuto says. He steps forward, yanks Anko up by the arm. "Did you really think you were so powerful?"
A thin film of sweat forms on Anko's brow. "It doesn't matter," Anko says. Kabuto tilts his head. A shadow falls over Anko's eyes. "As long as I kill him, none of it does."
The knee to the gut knocks the wind from Anko's lungs, and she doubles over, agonized. Kabuto sniffs, annoyed.
"Orochimaru-sama will not take kindly to this," Kabuto says. He yanks her upright, then pulls her inside.
xXx
.
Kimimaro stands by the window, searching the dark for any sign of Anko outside. The sound of fighting has stopped. "I know what it's like to be abandoned," Anko said. "I will be here once you've come to terms with it."
"Kimimaro."
Kimimaro looks up and sees Orochimaru at the doorway. Kimimaro bows.
"Orochimaru-sama. I have returned," Kimimaro says. Orochimaru smiles.
"My child," Orochimaru says. "Come. Be with me while I see the intruder Kabuto has taken."
Kimimaro raises his eyes.
xXx
.
They push Anko forward, and she stumbles and slams her shoulder against the wall. There is no outward sign of emotion as Kimimaro watches Anko struggle, but inside Kimimaro is afraid.
"She killed six of our men, and injured a seventh," Kabuto says. "What should we do with her?"
Orochimaru steps forward, then presses a hard knuckle to Anko's cheek. "Such a stupid child," Orochimaru says. He twists her chin upwards, as if to examine her under the torchlight. Then he rears up and smacks Anko across the face.
Kimimaro takes a sharp breath. Anko's knocked sideways, and there's nothing elegant about the way her cheek reddens, or the way she nearly pitches toward the side.
"A waste," Orochimaru says. "You were a child with so much promise. A pity I was wrong."
Anko sags. Orochimaru turns.
"Kimimaro," Orochimaru says. Kimimaro startles, then looks upward. Orochimaru's mouth stretches into a lazy smile.
"Take care of this," Orochimaru says. He moves and shuts the door, Kabuto following after.
xXx
.
Kimimaro glances behind him, then quickly kneels by Anko's side. He pulls at the bindings around her hands.
"Are you all right?" Kimimaro asks.
"Don't touch me," Anko says. She squirms but Kimimaro manages to hold her down.
"You have every right to be angry with me," Kimimaro says. His hands untie the knots, then pulls at the rope around her arms. "But please understand I did it to protect you."
The rope comes loose. Anko brings her hands forward, wincing at the red marks across her wrists. Then she rears up and attempts to hit him.
"You tried to kill me!" Anko says.
"I told you, it was to keep you from coming here."
"I trusted you!" Anko says, and she goes to strike him. They struggle, then Anko starts to cry.
"Listen to me," Kimimaro says. He manages to grab her by the wrist, and wrenches her arm back down. "Anko. Listen."
Anko sags, and in the dim light he can see her face stained with blood and tears. Something inside him breaks, then, and whatever tenderness and self-hatred he kept suppressed suddenly comes to the surface. "I only said those things so you would hate me," Kimimaro says. He searches Anko's face, desperately. "I never wanted you to come."
There are footsteps in the hall, and Kimimaro pulls back, reflexively. A moment passes, but there's nothing. Kimimaro grips Anko's arm.
"Listen to me," Kimimaro says. "Orochimaru-sama does not know about us. You could attack me, and he would not be the wiser."
"I don't understand," Anko says, and Kimimaro presses a kunai to her palm.
"I am weak," Kimimaro says. "My body moves by my will alone. You could take advantage of that. I am already less than nothing in their eyes; it is conceivable that I could fail to kill you."
"You want me to attack you?" Anko says.
"Yes," Kimimaro says. He grips her hand.
Anko lifts her head. There's something unreadable in her eyes as she turns the kunai over in her hands. "I'm sorry," Anko whispers. Then she stabs the kunai against Kimimaro's chest.
The pain jolts Kimimaro forward, then he doubles over, clutching his chest and coughing. "Kimimaro!" Anko is stricken.
"I am fine," Kimimaro says. He struggles to keep breathing. "There is a tunnel. Take that and it will lead you outside."
Anko hesitates a moment, before turning to stand. She glances back at Kimimaro, hesitantly.
"It is okay," Kimimaro says. He coughs again, gripping his chest. "I do not have long for this world, anyway."
"Kimimaro," Anko says. A door slams. Anko whirls around.
"Go," Kimimaro says. Anko looks at him for one last time.
"Thank you," Anko says, and Kimimaro watches as she disappears down the hall.