Kabuto walked down one of the few brightly lit corridors, passing the doors of various rooms of innumerable previous "favourites" as he had put to Mika. Occasionally he would pass a door which had been painted a different colour to the others, letting him know that someone was in long-term residence; but the occupants weren't in at that time, they were probably out training as they spent most of their time doing… trying to keep up with Orochimaru's demands.

He looked down at his list and sped up a little, realising that he was actually on the wrong floor: the room he was looking for was on the floor above… closer to Orochimaru's room. He pushed his glasses higher up the bridge of his nose as he took the stairs two at a time, still looking up and down his list and not noticing the small figure curled up on the top step. He did a double take and realised it was Orochimaru's latest favourite, Mika Tikaake, staring blankly into space in front of her with her right hand over her mouth and a small confused frown on her forehead. She didn't seem to have noticed Kabuto standing there.

'Err, Mika?' he asked uncertainly, bending over to get a better look at her expression which was unchanged. 'Are you alright Mika?' he asked lowering himself to his knees to be as close to his level as he could manage without sitting down. 'Mika?' he repeated snapping his fingers next to her cheek, making her jump and look up at him apprehensively, pulling her hand away from her lips.

'Sorry…' she mumbled, her hands wringing together nervously as she gazed down at them. 'I guess I was away with the fairies.' she continued with a small tentative giggle as she repeated Kabuto's words from the day before.

'What's on your mind?' asked the friendly older boy, shuffling a little in his position as his left foot developed pins and needles. 'Is it the fight Orochimaru's planning between you and Kimimaro? Because if it is then there's no need to sweat too much.' he said quickly hoping to fix the girl and then get on with his rounds.

'No, it's not the fight.' she answered with a meek giggle, clearly forced. She took a deep breath and blushed crimson, clearly trying to do something against her better will. 'Last night… Orochimaru visited me.' she said slowly, making long pauses between each word. Oh no. thought the silver haired young man to himself. Here we go again. This always happens.

'How do you mean, "he visited you"?' he asked uninterestedly, this wasn't the first time this had happened… but he was a little surprised that she had given in to him so quickly: most of the people who had let him have his way with them had gone to him, not vice versa; and she didn't seem to like him all that much, let alone enough to let that happen to her. Plus she was surprisingly young, so she can't have had much experience.

'He came to my bedroom last night.' she snapped short temperedly, but her expression over-rode the snappish tone: she was insecure, nervous. 'He… well, we…' there was a long pause while she blushed beetroot and tried to find words to describe without too much detail what had happened. 'Kissed.' she said swallowing hard. Was that it? Orochimaru usually a LOT more than that.

'And?' pressed the young man, deciding that she wasn't telling him everything. Her blush intensified: he was right, more had happened last night than just some innocent kissing.

'He… his… umm, his tongue…' she stammered quietly, almost inaudibly as she fiddled with her revealing skirt nervously. 'He… on top of me… and… umm… err…' he wasn't getting very far, but he had an idea of what may have happened.

'Did he force you to do something?' he asked comprehensibly, trying to sound sympathetic but simply trying to get the secret out. She shook her head slowly, her long hair falling across her flushed face, her eyes staring at the stairs below them. What? He hadn't forced her? 'Did he… sleep with you?' he asked, trying to find a word which wouldn't make her even more uncomfortable.

'I'm thirteen, Kabotu!' she exclaimed loudly and snapping her head around to stare at him with a scandalised expression. 'No! Ew…' she added looking back down the stairs again with an incredulous look on her young flushed face.

'It's Kabuto.' he prompted, trying not to feel offended as he grimaced discreetly. 'And I apologize, but I just expected that and thought that you might be having trouble admitting it.'

'Why were you expecting it?' she asked quickly, looking over at him again with curious anger in her deep brown eyes. 'It's happened before, hasn't it? With one of his favourites.' she continued when she realised that he wasn't going to answer. They sat in companionable silence for a moment before she buckled up, clutching her stomach and growling in pain, her face screwed up against it.

'He's calling you.' said Kabuto indifferently without looking at her as she writhed beside him. 'He's in the big training area at the far end.' he told her as she sat up again, inspecting her mini curse mark and breathing heavily, moaning a little occasionally and making the young man feel quite awkward. 'Walk to the end of this corridor, down the stairs and to the end of that on in the same direction.' he explained unenthusiastically, pointing down the hall he had to walk down. Mika nodded up at him, still breathing heavily and wincing a little as she gingerly prodded her sore tummy.