Disclaimer: Own nothing. If I did, I would be one rich SOB
"Mercy?" Gohan asked silkily. He whirled and grabbed Orochimaru with his other hand as the wood log in his occupied fist shattered. Orochimaru looked shocked but soon was gurgling just as effectively as his clone had been. "You want mercy?" The boy's aura flared out wider in response to his emotions as the killing intent became almost too much to take. "If you want mercy, then I suggest you be sincere about it, bastard. But did you show mercy to Naruto? Huh? Answer me!"
Orochimaru clawed at the deceptively slight hand that had him by the throat. Though he pushed and pulled with all his considerable might, Orochimaru was unable to break the adrenalin and anger-fueled grip of Son Gohan. Gohan blasted a fist into the Sannin's face, rocking his head back, blood spraying from his nose and mouth. "ANSWER ME!"
Orochimaru spluttered something.
"I can't hear you," Gohan snarled.
The pale man's hand fell limply at his side.
Orochimaru leered at his assailant. "Kiss your power good-bye brat!" His recently freed hand came forward and smashed into Gohan's neck, where the Cursed Seal was. The Sannin forced his chakra into his hand then pushed it into Gohan's body.
Orochimaru screamed as his hand was blown right off Gohan's body in a huge backlash of power. His right hand was bathed in the same electric and gold aura that danced over Gohan's teenage form even then, but unlike Gohan, who was unaffected by his overwhelming ki, Orochimaru wasn't so lucky, his hand crisping and blackening right before his eyes. The Sannin's cheeks bulged grotesquely then something sprayed from his mouth. Gohan snapped his head to one side to avoid whatever shot out. His flinty emerald eyes widened as Orochimaru deflated right in his hand. It was like he was holding a fleshy bag.
Gohan was trembling with anger but his inner gentle nature, assuaged under the rush of power that the Ascension always brought with it, managed to reassert its hold, knowing that he couldn't do anything being controlled by the anger like he'd just been. Tsunade's lips curled with faint approval as she watched the kid inhale then exhale a shaky calming breath. Gohan spun on his heel to face the pale Sannin, his eyes still full of rage, but now it was again focused and under tenuous control. Orochimaru wasn't wondering about that though. He was more concerned why his attempt to control Gohan's Cursed Seal had backfired on him.
"Why didn't the seal work?" He demanded. "Why!"
Gohan smirked, wordlessly reaching up and tugging his gi top lower to expose the patch of flesh where the Seal resided.
Or perhaps the phrase 'had once resided' would be more appropriate.
There was no sign of the three inverted raindrops on the young warrior's skin. It was as if Gohan had never even been marked in the first place. Orochimaru was stunned, even taking a step or two backwards in shock. "H-How? No one should be able to remove that mark! No one!"
Even Tsunade was gaping openly at Gohan, her face a mask of surprise.
"I should really thank you, Orochimaru," Gohan replied as he tugged his gi back into place. "After all, if it weren't for the Cursed Seal," his lip curled in a mocking half-grin as he rubbed his neck, "I would've never have reached Super Saiyan 2."
"What! What are you talking about!"
"When I came here from my dimension, I was marked by two seals," the young warrior, and scholar, explained. "We think it was to seal my power so that when I went from my dimension to this one, I didn't shock the dimensional boundaries and destroy both universes. I broke the first seal in the Forest of Death during the Chuunin Exams. Remember that?"
Orochimaru glared as he nodded reluctantly, not appreciating being reminded of that particular day. "That first seal was the easy one. The second one would be much more resilient," Gohan went on. "Or at least that's what I thought, so I've never tried breaking it until today. And that's where the Cursed Seal comes in, because it draws out my body's latent energy." He chuckled humorlessly. "Well, when that mark started pulling on my ki from 'behind' the dimensional seal, it put pressure on second seal. I guess you could think of it as a balloon being overfilled with air. So when I hit it from the front…" he trailed off, not needing to put the rest to words.
"Wait!" Orochimaru cried, not daring to believe it. "You mean you would not have been able to break this second dimensional seal…"
"If you hadn't marked me with the Cursed Seal," Gohan finished, grinning wolfishly and dangerously. "So I guess I should say thank you."
Tsunade came over laughing. "How about that, Orochimaru? You dug your own grave here today." Her face darkened as her old comrade and former friend stumbled back again, not taking the news that he had laid the groundwork for this moment with his own hand so well. "You hurt Naruto. You dared to desecrate the memory of Dan and Nawaki. I hope you realize that you're not getting out of here alive." She cracked her knuckles as Gohan rolled and popped his neck. "Ready to die?"
"I'm not dying here," he snarled venomously as he started molding hand seals. "I can't. I won't! Fuuton! Daitoppa!" The blast of wind that erupted from Orochimaru was strong enough to make both Tsunade and Gohan sway and stumble. They shielded their eyes and leaned into the hammering wind. The wind quit just as fast as it started, leaving both Sannin and Super Saiyan overbalanced. They had to take a moment to reorient themselves and get their balance back.
It was in that moment that Orochimaru struck.
The Kusanagi flashed in the wan sun as it tried to break through the rain and heavy thunderclouds overhead. Tsunade yelped in pain as sword impaled her through the stomach as she fell forward suddenly bleeding. Orochimaru spun away from her gracefully, pulling the blade free as he did and slashing at Gohan. Had he been just a hair faster, he probably could've done the same to Gohan, but the warrior had regained his wits by that point and had gotten his guard up. Orochimaru struck anyway.
Bloody gashes opened on Gohan's arms, legs, and face as the blade stabbed here and there, always just a split instant too fast. Gohan snarled to drown the pain, leaned as fast as he could and lunged. The Kusanagi was right next to his left ear, but Gohan's right fist was firmly burrowed in Orochimaru's abdomen. No, the teen realized as his brain caught up with his body, his fist had actually gone through the Sannin's stomach.
Orochimaru's body popped as the Kage Bunshin dispelled from the damage it had taken. Gohan was suddenly aware of an ominous presence behind him. Somehow, someway, Orochimaru had gotten behind him, rearing up to strike the young Saiyan down.
"Dammit!" Gohan grunted as he tried to turn, tried to bring his body in line to either evade or stop the blow that was already coming. But even as he turned, Gohan knew he would be only a hair too slow. Orochimaru had used every ounce of the stealth he possessed to sneak up on the young man.
"Good-bye Son Gohan!" Orochimaru cackled. "May you burn in Hell!"
"Hey," A voice interrupted. "This kid's not going anywhere."
"Huh?"
WHAM!
Something smashed into Orochimaru's face. He bounced once or twice before managing to get back to his feet and stop himself. He looked up, face a mask of shock. "Tsunade!"
Gohan was just as stunned as Orochimaru was. Hadn't he seen Tsunade get run through by the Kusanagi? Maybe she'd done a Kage Bunshin or something…he leaned around her to check the patch of grass where she'd fallen. There was a patch of red a few feet away, being washed clean by the downpour.
"But you were run through!" Gohan protested. "It was a fatal wound! How're you…"
"Still alive?" Tsunade asked with a smirk. She jabbed a finger at her forehead and Gohan had to do a double take. The purple diamond that Gohan had initially taken to be a tattoo was gone. "Sozo Saisei. It speeds mitosis and lets my cells divide at a rate that's unbelievable." She gestured to the bloody gash in her shirt, all that remained of a once-grievous wound. "When I'm like this, I'm effectively immortal."
"Immortal?" Orochimaru repeated. "Impossible!"
Tsunade's smirk widened as she beckoned him forward. "Come on and try me then," she said confidently. "You won't be killing me today."
The blade of Kusanagi shot out like a bullet, a flash of silver even to Gohan's keen eyesight. Blood sprayed from Tsunade as the edge ran her through. The ground behind her erupted as the blade hit the earth. Just as quickly as it had extended, the blade retracted. Tsunade lurched as it came free and gasped in pain. Red blood flowed from her at a rate that should've had her in a grave in seconds, but instead, the wound hissed like her skin was extraordinarily hot, the blood stopped just as fast as it started, and the wound sealed. Again all that was left was a patch of red on her green shirt and a slit where she'd been speared and that was it. There wasn't even a scar.
"No!" Orochimaru breathed. "NO! This cannot be!"
"Oh it can," Tsunade answered, wiping the small trickle of blood that had seeped down the left side of her mouth. She rolled her head and popped the bones in her neck. Gohan did something similar and cracked his knuckles. The two titans settled into fighting stances. "Shall we finish this?"
Orochimaru took a step or two backwards, looking scared. His chances for escape were starting to look pretty slim. He turned to run, not caring that he was supposed to be someone who never retreated, only knowing how to win, but the second he faced the other direction, Gohan was in front of him.
"Where the hell do you think you're going?" The Ascended Saiyan asked.
"There's only two ways you're leaving here today, Orochimaru," Tsunade added as she blocked Orochimaru from behind. "One is in a body bag and the other is in a casket. Which one we use will be up to you."
"I won't be killed by scum like you," the third member of the Sannin said defiantly, but the words rang hollow even to him.
"Sure you won't," Tsunade said dryly, clearly showing that she didn't believe his bluffing for a second. She and Gohan began to advance on her old teammate. Orochimaru screamed in anger and despair before he pulled something out of his pocket, ripped off his shirt, exposing his wiry torso, then slapped whatever it was all over himself. Both Gohan and Tsunade pulled their finishing blows short, knowing explosive tags when they saw them. The two bounced away and regrouped.
"Stay away from me!" Orochimaru screamed, looking as insane on the outside as he was on the inside. "Or I'll take you all with me!"
"What's up with him?" Gohan asked.
"He can't handle the fact that he's getting his ass so thoroughly kicked," Tsunade answered. "In all the time I've known him, he's never been pushed against the ropes this completely. In addition, he's been beaten to his precious immortality and, as you can see, it's not sitting well with him."
"Is that right?" Gohan replied, smiling viciously. "That's satisfying to know."
Tsunade raised an eyebrow at the dark satisfaction in the young man's tone, but didn't say anything about it. After all, she felt the same way too. She had a distinctly happy feeling in her gut knowing that her teammate had been so thoroughly broken, ripped off the pedestal he'd had himself on, dragged down the stairs to earth with the rest of them, then shattered like a cheap china plate.
Tsunade sighed. "I've had enough," she said, turning and walking away. "If he's this broken then he'll never be the same again. There's no point in pushing this any further." She glanced back at Gohan when he didn't follow immidiatly. "Coming kid?"
Gohan took another look at Orochimaru, who now looked downright crazy, drooling, grinning insanely, his golden eyes bulging with a madness that was almost pitiable, considering his past as one of the most conniving and sly men on the planet. Finally, Gohan too turned and began walking away from the broken Orochimaru, who was still plastered in explosive tags and giggling quietly to himself.
He and Tsunade got halfway back to where Jiraiya, Shizune, who was now tying Kabuto up in wire and rope, the silver-haired traitor obviously hopped up on some drug, and Naruto, who was awake and leaning against Jiraiya but not coherent, something that was obvious even at this distance. The two of them got to the halfway point.
Gohan whirled without warning.
"KAMEHAMEHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
Orochimaru howled in terror as the blast roared towards him, more enormous than anything Gohan had ever fired in that dimension. The tags were the first things to go.
KA-BAMBAMBOOM!
The explosions shook everything like a leaf, Tanzaku castle simply disintegrating under the onslaught. The mushroom cloud left by the explosion billowed tens of thousands of feet into the air, the shockwave from the explosion wiping out the thunderstorm that had been roaring overhead the entire battle before speeding on and flattening a good portion of Tanzaku town, turning almost an entire district into nothing but broken matchsticks and firewood.
Gohan stood up straight as dirt and rocks rained down from the heavens. In front of him stretched a huge furrow that reached all the way over the horizon. His aura, screaming at its full brightness and size, vanished, the electricity that danced over his body skittering for a few more brief seconds before it too went away.
Tsunade actually took a few steps away from Gohan as he stormed past her, his face apoplectic with rage, his eyes smoldering with more hatred than anyone his age should've been allowed. Shizune and Jiraiya looked just as shocked.
"Gohan-kun, why?" Shizune asked finally.
Goku's son didn't answer as he marched by Jiraiya, Naruto, Shizune, and the unconscious Kabuto. Then just as suddenly, he stopped and slumped. When he spoke, he sounded like he was choked up and about to cry. "Because," he said in a voice that was the closest he'd sounded to his normal self since he'd transformed to Super Saiyan 2. "I made the mistake of not finishing a battle once before. It cost my father his life." The now-familiar steel in his tone backed his next words. "I won't make that mistake ever again."
He blasted into the sky and vanished behind the massive mound of kindling Tanzaku castle had become.
"Gohan-kun!" Shizune called after him. Jiraiya's firm hand on her shoulder cut her off.
"Let him go," Jiraiya said. "It was his decision to attack Orochimaru like that. This is his path to walk and no one can tell him otherwise. And frankly," he added, looking back at the patch of earth in the furrow that was darker than the rest, "I can't really say I disprove of his choice."
Shizune frowned but she nodded, seeing Jiraiya's point.
Tsunade glanced down at her hand as her skin went from pale, smooth, and flawless to old, wrinkled, and baggy. Her mouth curled upwards in a self-depreciating smile as her Sozo Saisei ran out and took her genjutsu with it.
"So what do we do now, Tsunade?" Jiraiya asked, still watching where Gohan had vanished to, clearly aware of what was going on with his teammate but choosing to ignore it for her sake.
"Isn't it obvious?" Tsunade asked from behind him. "We're going back to Konoha. I have a village I have to run."
Jiraiya looked up at the clear skies above him. "Then what are we waiting for?" He asked. "Let's get going!"
The group started down the hill towards Tanzaku.
Across the dimensions, Bulma shouted as her dimensional portal, now completely repaired and brought back online, overloaded once more. At least this time she didn't have to blow the connections again, but the fact remained that this was the first time she'd tried to open the portal and bring Gohan back to the world he belonged to but for some inexplicable reason, the portal just wasn't working. She'd tried every variation of her initial calculations she could think of but to no avail. Gohan remained firmly in whatever dimension he'd been transported to in that accident so many months ago.
At least Chichi had quit hovering over the young genius like some madwoman.
Bulma wiped at the grease that was stubbornly smudged across her forehead and only succeeded in smearing it across the rest of her face. The scientist shook it off though. Being dirty was nothing new, even if she did bitch about sometimes, but helping Gohan back to the world he belonged in took priority. She could take a bath later.
"But what happened?" Bulma muttered to herself. "Why did the machine fry again?" She replayed the events that had led to her firing up the portal in the first place. When she'd reconstructed the machine, she'd added a little something to it that worked much like the Dragon Radar did but instead of finding the Dragonballs, instead it found ki signatures. For days she'd been hunting across time and space for Gohan's ki but hadn't found anything.
Then she'd gotten a lock on him and tried to pull him back but the second she did, Gohan's ki flared to unimaginable levels, levels she typically associated with Super Saiyan 2, and the resultant backlash had completely fried both her locater device and a few key components inside the portal itself. Those parts were close to irreplaceable. They had been custom made by Bulma herself and the materials that she'd used were so rare it could take months just to get enough to recast the components.
Not to mention she had no idea where she had put the molds, which was a problem in and of itself. At this rate, it would be faster to collect the Dragonballs and wish Gohan back than it would to get the portal device operational again.
The wrench in Bulma's hand clattered to the floor of her lab.
The Dragonballs! She could wish Gohan back to their dimension! The only question was if Shenlong was capable of it, but since the Eternal Dragon was a semi-omnipotent extradimensional creature in and of itself, it should be theoretically possible. Another thought occurred to Bulma with her revelation about the Dragonballs. If she was right, then it would allow Gohan to come home in a much safer manner than which he'd left, which would cut down on him being stuck in the unknown areas between stable areas of space-time.
Bulma dashed for her room, nearly tackling Vegeta as he emerged from the training chamber. She ignored his shouted protests as she sprinted up the stairs and flung herself under her bed, scrambling for the briefcase that held the various mementos of her adventures with Goku and the rest over the years. She threw open the lid and there, sitting on the neatly-folded clothes she'd worn to Namek, was the white and green disc of the Dragon Radar.
She clicked it on and resized the screen.
She was in luck. There was a ball on this very continent.
Bulma barreled out her front door.
If everything went well, she could have the Dragonballs collected in a month or two and Gohan could be back almost instantly.
She grinned. She really should've thought of this earlier.
Almost a month and a half after they set out, only two weeks after finding Tsunade, Jiraiya, Naruto, and Gohan came back to Konohagakure with a few extras in tow.
Kabuto was handed off almost immidiatly to Konoha's ANBU Interrogation Division. The traitor Leaf-nin would wake up in the 'tender' care of Morino Ibiki and Mitarashi Anko, both of whom would be more eager to set on him and get him to spill his deepest and darkest secrets.
The other five's welcome was much warmer. After the ANBU had left, the Sandaime himself came up the road, puffing his pipe, clad in his Hokage finery, and a grandfatherly grin on his face.
"So you succeeded then," Sarutobi said.
Tsunade, by now long recovered and again cloaked in her genjutsu (she'd refused to leave what was left of Tanzaku until it was restored), snorted. "Isn't it obvious Old Man?"
Sarutobi laughed as Koharu and Homura bristled at Tsunade's callous greeting of the revered and venerable leader. "I see you haven't lost your quick tongue or your health in the time you've been gone." Tsunade muttered something that made him laugh. His dark eyes found Shizune. "And Shizune-san," he said with a bow. "A pleasure as always."
"It's an honor to see you again, Sandaime-sama," Shizune replied with a deeper bow.
"Sarutobi-san will do," the Hokage said with another chuckle. "Since my replacement has arrived, yes?" He quirked an eyebrow at Tsunade, unsure of how much work he would have to do to convince her to take up the hat and robe.
"Yeah yeah," Tsunade huffed with a wave of her hand. "I'll be the freaking Godaime." She looked away with a 'hrumph'. Sarutobi only grinned, which only widened when Tsunade added under her breath, "I'm glad you're not dead, Old Man."
"Excellent work, Jiraiya," Sarutobi said.
"Wasn't all me, Old Man," Jiraiya said with a grin, tousling both Naruto and (Normal) Gohan's hair. "These two had a big part in it."
"I figured as much," the Sandaime answered which made Naruto grin and Gohan rub the back of his neck sheepishly. "Jiraiya sent me a messenger toad with news of Orochimaru's demise at young Gohan-kun's hands. I must say, Gohan, I didn't think your second form would be so powerful."
"You knew?" Gohan asked, shocked and startled.
"Second form?" Naruto asked. "You mean you can get more powerful than that Super Saiy-watchamacallit?"
Gohan nodded, still surprised that Sarutobi had figured him out so fast. Jiraiya had told him that there had been nothing in the message about the ascension, only that Gohan and Tsunade had tag-teamed and killed Orochimaru.
Naruto's mouth worked like a fish.
Sarutobi grinned. "Of course I knew," he said in answer to Gohan's question. "It wasn't hard to figure out when I was able to feel that fearsome power of yours all the way out here."
"It reached all the way to Konoha?" Gohan asked as the group began to walk down the street, Koharu and Homura leaving as Sarutobi dismissed them.
"It did," Sarutobi replied. "And you even broke the window in my office!"
"Sorry about that."
"It's quite alright. After all, because of that power, you were able to defeat my wayward student."
"I didn't really mean to kill him," Gohan said quickly. "It's just that I get so mad as an Ascended Saiyan that…"
Sarutobi forestalled him with a hand. "If you are worried about my being angry over this occurrence, don't be." The Kage took a pull on his pipe and exhaled a cloud of fragrant smoke. "Please do not forget, Gohan-kun, that I myself tried to kill him only a month or so ago. It had to be done and in all honesty, you probably did the world a favor."
"I'm glad you're catching up with everyone, Old Man," Tsunade interrupted, "but can we get this whole show on the road. You know, before I change my mind."
Sarutobi laughed outright at that. "My dear Tsunade," he said, chortling, "When have you ever been known to change your mind about something?"
"You two are free to go," Jiraiya said to the two youngest of the group. "This is gonna be a lot of paperwork and boring stuff."
"Who wants to sit through that?" Naruto asked. "Right Gohan?"
"Yeah."
The two roommates headed off in a different direction. After eating Ichiraku out o their daily stock of broth and noodles, Naruto went back to his apartment to unpack while Gohan decided to go find Sakura and see what she was up to. All around him were signs of Konoha's recovery from the disaster that had befallen it only a month or two before.
New buildings had been erected where old ones had been knocked down, damaged structures had either been demolished and rebuilt or shored up and made to look like new. It seemed like every wall in town had a new coat of paint on it and every store, house, eatery, and pub had a new façade and a new look.
Gohan grinned to himself. He was starting to really enjoy his time in this dimension. It was becoming more and more of a home to him with every day that passed. He especially enjoyed these days of peace. That more than anything meant a lot to him. It was a rare privilege for him to be able to just have a day to himself and do nothing.
He wished it could last forever.
Gohan should've known better.
Sasuke sat on a stool in his room, staring out the window at the jounin of the police force who were patrolling underneath him. One month. One month he'd been cooped up in his house, unable to leave for even the most menial of things. If he needed groceries or something, he told on of the jounin and they would go and get it. Naturally, they would bring back what Sasuke didn't need and he would have to tell them and they would have to go again and tempers would flare and it got real nasty when it was all said and done.
Sasuke wanted nothing more than to get the hell out of his prison but they, they being everyone from the Hokage on downward, insisted that Sasuke had yet to apologize for his actions during the Chuunin Exams when he'd attacked Gohan in order to test himself. The young avenger's teeth ground at thought as he also remembered the humiliating defeat the Aburame Shino had served him.
He needed to get stronger and he needed to get stronger now so he could go after and kill Itachi. What was so wrong with that? Itachi was a missing-nin anyway, so he was marked for death one way or another. Did it really matter that Sasuke had to be the one to deal the killing blow? Did it really matter that Sasuke had tried to fight Son Gohan in order to test himself?
Sasuke thought of Orochimaru.
Orochimaru.
One of the three Densetsu no Sannin, the Legendary Three Ninja, three of the most powerful shinobi in Konoha, probably second only to the famous Konoha no Kiiroi Senko, Konoha's Yellow Flash, better known as the Yondaime Hokage. Every couple of days since his imprisonment, Sasuke's thoughts had flashed back to the encounter in the Forest of Death, almost two months previously now. Orochimaru had been so powerful, so self-assured, so unstoppable. From what Sakura had told him later, Orochimaru had even been more powerful than Son Gohan at his peak. That peak was one hell of a summit too, if the Third Exam had been any indication.
The Curse Seal on Sasuke's neck throbbed painfully.
It had been getting more and more insistent these days, almost as if it sensed his disquiet and was guiding him towards Orochimaru and the instruction that the Sannin could offer him.
Not that it mattered as imprisoned as he was. As if the out-of-reach lure wasn't enough, rumors had started circulating that Gohan had actually met Itachi. How that had happened, Sasuke had no idea, but he guessed that Gohan had been a part of that mission to find Tsunade, also of the Sannin, and bring her back to Konoha to become the Godaime. Apparently Tsunade had arrived either the day before or a few hours ago, depending on who you listened to.
Then there had been that earthquake and light a couple of weeks ago. Somehow Sasuke knew that Gohan had something to do with it and he was dying to know just what it was, but no matter who he asked, no on had an answer, or at least wasn't going to give him a straight answer.
To summarize what Sasuke was feeling, he wanted nothing more than to kill his brother Itachi, but he knew he didn't have the power, but was reasonably sure that Son Gohan had the power. Defeat Son Gohan, who could take down Itachi, and, hopefully, at that point, Sasuke would be strong enough to defeat his brother. But the problem was that Sasuke knew he was no match for Gohan, which led him back to the fact that Orochimaru had offered him power, which in turn led him to wondering if even that could bring down Itachi, and on and on it went as Sasuke's thoughts chased each other around his skull like gerbils.
That was Sasuke's imprisonment. Wake up, contemplate his position, eat maybe, contemplate some more, then go to bed and start all over. Twilight was setting in and Sasuke decided that he was getting sick of just running his thoughts around in circles. He slipped into bed and drifted off to sleep.
He awoke with a start and threw his pillow. Sasuke's impromptu projectile flew true and hit something in the face. The interloper was distracted, which allowed Sasuke to tackle him and drive him to the floor. Sasuke's left hand swiped a letter opener off his desk and held it to the intruder's throat. It wasn't a knife and didn't even have an edge to it, but in the darkness it looked like a knife and that was what mattered. The genin also kept the edge of the person's throat, so he couldn't feel the dull edge but close enough to still be aware of its presence.
"Easy! I'm on your side!" The new arrival protested.
"Who the hell are you?" Sasuke growled. Both were talking in hushed voices but that didn't stop Sasuke from realizing that the person he was dealing with was about his age, maybe a couple of years older. Of course that didn't mean anything. This person could've been even more dangerous than Kakashi for all Sasuke knew.
"My name is Sakon," Sakon said.
"What do you want?"
"Get off me and I'll be happy to tell you."
Sasuke eased himself off Sakon, who stood and dusted himself off. He stopped short when he saw Sasuke's letter opener. "A letter opener?" Sakon said with a shake of his head. "I'll give you points for acting at least."
"What do you want?" Sasuke reiterated.
"Straight to the point then. Okay. That's cool. The less time I'm here the better. Tayuya can only fool jounin for so long. I'll make this short then. I'm Sakon."
"You said that."
"Shut up and listen. My name is Sakon. I'm here on a mission to recruit you."
"Recruit me?"
Sakon nodded, allowing the moonlight outside to catch his silver hair, the only part of Sakon Sasuke was able to see. "You see, I'm an envoy sent to you from Orochimaru-sama."
Sakon suddenly had Sasuke's full attention. "Orochimaru?" Sasuke asked, hardly able to keep the surprise, and excitement, out of his voice. After a very long time of waiting, pondering, and daydreaming, an opportunity to get his hands on some real, tangible, strength had suddenly plopped itself down right into Sasuke's lap.
Sakon nodded again. "Yeah. Orochimaru-sama has had his eye on you, Sasuke, and he wants you to join up with us. If you do, I don't think I need to tell you that you'll have power beyond your wildest imaginings."
"I can imagine quite a bit," Sasuke retorted, Gohan's vivid gold hair and Itachi's Sharingan flitting across his vision.
"You're thinking of your brother Itachi and Son Gohan," Sakon said immidiatly, making Sasuke do a double take and wonder if this guy could read minds.
Sasuke nodded grudgingly, recognizing the futility in hiding it.
Sakon's lip curled in a cruel smile. "If you take me up on this offer, we'll be able to give you more control over your Cursed Mark. You only know the first level. There's a second tier above that that you'll be able to control at will. Once you do that, Orochimaru-sama said to tell you that he'll train you personally." Sakon was lying through his teeth about that one. He had no idea what Orochimaru's plans for Sasuke were and he didn't want to know. "So what do you say?"
Sasuke remained silent for a moment before speaking. "I can't really get out of here," he said, gesturing to the window. "There're guards everywhere and they're jounin. You won't be able to stop them so easily."
"We know. That's why we'll give you a little time to think about it. We'll come back tomorrow night. Have your answer for us by then." With that, Sakon turned, checked something out the window, then vanished into the night. Sasuke shut the window behind the departing Oto-nin and returned to bed, a path suddenly blooming before him.
Uh-oh! Sasuke's up to something! Anyway, hope you enjoyed the chapter. Know what the ironic thing is? While I'm writing this author's note, there's a thing on the History Channel about parallel universes. Ironic, yes? I digress. Look forward to the next chapter!
~WingedFreedom622
Glossary
Sozo Saisei (Creation Rebirth): Tsunade's greatest secret. She stores up chakra in her forehead seal to be released at a later time. This speeds up her cellular regeneration. Contrary to what she told Orochimaru, she's NOT immortal when she uses this. Actually, she's hurting herself because of the accelerating mitosis, which shortens her life by a as of yet unspecified amount.
Futon: Daitoppa (Wind Style: Great Breakthrough): The user creates a huge blast of wind chakra that can carry a person right off their feet (think canon Naruto in the Second Exam). Additional jutsu can be added to this technique to further the potency of both. Orochimaru only used it here as a distraction.