In the previous Chapter: Through the rest of the trip all three remained silent. Sakura felt an awkward tension in the air from the other two members. She wasn't sure whether to be unsettled more by Orochimaru's seeming threat or Hinata's reaction. Why would she step in to protect him? I know she is his student but to confront me in his defense? He must be pulling some strings on her. Thats it! I have to keep him away from her as much as possible, anything he touches or is near becomes corrupted. Just like with Sasuke...no I will not let Hinata be corrupted too! She may be timid and gentle but I am not.
With a small fire burning underneath her skin Hinata walked with her head held high into the bedroom Sakura and her would be staying at. She watched as the pink haired kunoichi relaxed on one of the beds. I have to lower her guard around me. If she begins to doubt me she might investigate my loyalty to Orochimaru. She isn't dumb, she can easily figure things out but I must use her confidence against her. Hinata let out a soft sigh, making sure it was loud enough for her teammate to hear.
Sakura jumped a little startled at the sudden noise. Her hand made a twitch but she quickly realized it was just Hinata at the door. "Oh Hinata its just you." To Sakura's surprise there was once again the heiress' old habit. Hinata was twirling her fingers, pressing them together and fumbling unconfidently. It seemed strange after her tough show to see her so small again.
"U-uhm, S-sakura can I a-ask something f-from you? I understand i-if you don't want to b-b-but please f-forgive me a-about earlier..." Hinata wasn't looking her in the eye. No the old Hinata wouldn't dare make eye contact with others when asking for forgiveness, she could only hang her head and wallow in shame. It wasn't until now that she realized how true Orochimaru's words were, she really had been pathetic in her behavior. She tried to think of him, how cold his touch was at times and the shiver she enjoyed that would go through her spine from his icy skin.
"H-Hinata? I-its okay! You don't have to apologize...I really was out of my mind attacking Orochimaru, but its just he got me so fired up. Im the one who should be sorry. I let him get inside my head and put you in danger." Sakura quickly rose as she looked at the blushing girl. No doubt from shame. Sakura patted her lightly. As uncharacteristic as it was that she dared to step in between her and her target, Sakura never thought to consider what it must have been like for her. "Hey Hinata if you don't mind can I ask you some questions. I promise I am not mad but I am curious..."
She stared into Sakura's light emerald eyes quietly praying she was not too suspicious. "T-thank you Sakura. Your always so n-noble." She looked towards the corridor that lead to the main living space where Orochimaru and Kabuto were no doubt discussing issues as well. She closed the door as she finally stepped in and gave Sakura a nod.
Sakura scratched the back of her head unsure of what to ask first. "I guess we might as well get things out of the way right off the bat, its been bugging me all day really but why...why would you come to Orochimaru's defense?" Any kindness Sakura held in her voice was replaced with force and seriousness. Her eyes stared the Hyuuga down as she saw her once again avoid eye contact with her. She hated to have to be so intimidating with the girl, but she had to make sure she was an ally.
"I-i don't know myself, i-it all sort of h-happened so f-fast." She looked at Sakura, the pink hair kunoichi was listening intently but said nothing. She gulped and took a deep breath before continuing. "Im s-sorry I can't g-give a better a-answer. I-i don't blame y-you if you think I a-am weak."
Sakura shifted awkwardly. Here was the eldest of the Hyuuga sisters apologizing and feeling ashamed of something she shouldn't be. On top of that her stutter has come back, why was that? "Hinata your stuttering again, but you weren't earlier today." She meet her lilac eyes as she nodded in understanding. "I-i know. Y-you see its a little complicated. When ever Im i-in Orochimaru-s-sensei's presence he p-preferes for m-me to speak p-properly. I-its a bit difficult a-and its a l-large s-strain b-but Im doing much b-better than before! O-of course i-if you want me to, I-i could try and s-speak b-better in front of y-you too." Hinata trailed off drawing a circle with her feet.
Sakura smiled weakly at the shy kunoichi as she shook her head. "It's okay. You can talk with whatever makes you feel better. You don't have to worry about pleasing me. But there is one more thing I want to ask you... a bit off subject but uhmm...what is training like with Orochimaru?"
Hinata could see the noticeable blush that fell on Sakura's face. "Y-you d-dont have to answer b-but this question has s-something to do with Sasuke...r-right?" The way Sakura reacted in blushing even more furiously and swinging her legs without giving a response. Of course this has to do with Sasuke. The more I look at her the more I wonder if I looked just as pathetic chasing after Naruto. It's a wonder no one could take me seriously. Hinata thought to herself as she prepared herself for what was no doubt going to be a long, tedious night.
Two Months Later
"This appears to be the final one from Mist. It's rather saddening really." Kabuto confirmed as he carefully pulled the corpse out of the bin with Sakura's help. "The Mizukage won't be too pleased but Im sure she will be relieved that the village won't be in any more danger."
Orochimaru walked back and forth thinking. "We need to report a false culprit then. That's the only way we can continue the investigation without causing an alert to the others." Orochimaru leaned against the wall of the warehouse looking at the corpse. They would have to denounce this victim and instead name him the culprit. Appear a few times in public, then turn in the body. Almost as if by telepathy Kabuto let out a heavy sigh and pulled out a blank scroll. "With our current supplies, the best I can do is about 4 days. Then we have to hand over the body or else it will raise suspicions if its slightly decayed."
"Using the victim as the culprit...it's a horrible thing. I don't see what the big deal is with letting people know someone is hunting you." Sakura looked away facing her back to all of them. "No Sakura it isn't that. If word was to get out that those with curse marks are the targets, then who knows how people would react. Many of them have re-integrated into society and are living new lives. Who is to know which was a loyal servant and the other a prisoner? Families would suffer and be in fear. When someone is being hunted down, their instinct is to hide and it could make it difficult to pinpoint where they are and even more importantly give our target an easier chance to find them running out in the open." Kabuto analyzed as he finished writing the scriptures before doing a few hand signs and teleporting the body else where.
"For the meantime it would be best not to go back and report to the Mizukage. Sakura you handle the paperwork since your the one most familiar, say we can't report and are closely following the trail and give his information as the one responsible. Come on Hinata I have something else in mind for you." Orochimaru waved off lazily before leaving the immediate room. Hinata quietly watched on her stomach slightly turning from the smell of blood in such a humid space. She followed Orochimaru without saying anything, leaving the two medics to clean up the mess.
Kabuto's rolled his eyes, he knew Orochimaru more than anyone else in this world. At first he had suspected that perhaps the Hyuuga girl would have been in a relationship with Naruto, like she had always desired but a few conversations with her about the subject proved she had changed her tastes. He had managed a few times to spot the two rather relaxed in each others company though nothing out of the "ordinary". But Orochimaru talking openly about himself and his past to someone was like a contract of loyalty and trust. As far as he knew only himself and Hinata are the only living beings alive that have heard him talk about his past. Not even Sasuke was granted that privilege or any other student, or subordinate... not once. It was rather nice to see him focus on something outside of science and experiments, it proves he is still part human in some aspects.
Sakura was perplexed on how Kabuto managed to find any joy in this. His smile was gentle as he used his tools to scrape as much evidence off the bin. She shuddered as she looked away from him and focused on finding clues on the floor. Even with such a calm-composed face he can do such a grotesque job. Sakura quietly observed at his unusually cold empathy in facing death.
Outside Hinata and Orochimaru looked out to the sea from the docks. The moon was a poor excuse of light source, the mist was heavy tonight and blocked out its dull glow even more. The few fireflies that would fade in and out at times were the most powerful light, hovering above the water giving it an eerie yet lovely feel. Hinata sighed with content at the scenery, mesmerized at how something frightening could be soothing.
"There was a legend that on nights like this creatures of half human and aquatic species would come out and sing." Orochimaru's words broke the silence. An amused sneer formed on his lips as he found himself enthusiastic. "I always wondered as a child how such a mixed specimen would come out. With the limitations of the past its rather amusing to think on how one would have been conceived. I actually had a mild interest in attempting such an experiment... to see if such a combination was possible. I was hoping perhaps with its success other hybrids would be possible as well." Orochimaru's words ended softly drifting back into the curiosity that plagued his infancy. All the questions that pounded inside his head that he wanted to answer, that no one else understood meant the world for him to solve.
Hinata continued to stare at the water sensing something underneath the surface of his words. "Creating hybrids with humans...that's a unique...I don't know. How old were you again when you pondered all of this?" Hinata giggled at the image of a young Orochimaru being excited by all these questions. His head nuzzled hers as he placed a soft kiss on it. "I don't think my age was wrong. Children are curious of what life has to show and ask questions frequently. I think its the type of questions I asked that were the most peculiar."
"To be truthful I wanted to know if the experiment bore fruit, it could perhaps unlock answers about myself. I was never really regarded as a human being, a child? Yes. A boy? Sometimes, it was interchangeable with being called "thing" or just a female. Never felt like a person or at least not completely. My appearance always perplexed me my entire life. With vague memories of my parents...I don't know if I resemble my mother or father more, or if I belonged to a clan or just an abnormality of nature." He switch the sides of his hands looking back and forth from his palm to the back of his hand, following the dull highlight of the moon on his pale skin.
"Not that long ago I pulled the project seeing how foolish and childish the idea was." He looked at Hinata who continued to gaze at the water. His hand found her cheek as he softly caressed the side of her face. Her lips made a soft smile as their eyes met. "That's a very poetic way to say mermaid..." She pondered the thought a little more. "Or is it a siren...? Which one was the one you heard of when you were a child? Is there a difference between the two?" Hinata looked at Orochimaru with curiosity. They both stared once again at the body of water.
"They were called sirens when I was young...they drowned anyone who would become allured by their songs. Nothing more than 'beautiful' dangerous creatures that turned horrid when you realized what their intentions were. Later I think they came up with mermaids as sort of a balance for the sirens. They aide drowning sailors and offer protection from the cruelty of the sea. They sing songs to guide them to safety...Im not positively certain, the old fool Jiraiya was the one who knew these kinds of things."Orochimaru scoffed. That idiot...he seems to always pop up even in death.
Hinata let out a laugh at the mention of his former friend and teammate. She knew he disliked to talk about his "friends" but it was clear enough for her to see they really did mean a lot to him once, probably still held some fondness to them which is why he hated to bring up the subject. "Jiraiya again? Is that so? Sometimes it sounds like he knew more than you." She giggled.
Orochimaru nudged her playfully. "Hmmph, its a childish legend with no supporting evidence. The girl, Isaribi and rouge scientist Amachi were the best results of that whim and it was rather pathetic. Not very pretty to say the least. And for such a creature to exist under natural circumstances...not likely in the least." Hinata remembered the girl. She heard of the mission from Ino. It was true she didn't have a very pretty image as the sea monster form like in the books, most likely the other Orochimaru had mentioned was among the same lines. "But yes sirens and mermaids, attempt of artificial creation did not produce a beautiful result."
Hinata folded her arms in contemplation. "Mermaids and sirens...I suppose you may not be able to tell which is which until the final moment." She leaned closer to Orochimaru resting her head on the side of his chest, nuzzling herself comfortably as his arm held her closely. "And here the world thought you were creating aquatic hybrid humans to create an underwater army. Not as intimidating as you would appear." She looked up at him as she saw an attractive smirk light his face.
"Intimidating? I never said I was..." They stood there a moment gazing into each others eyes before Orochimaru leaned to her and kissed her gently. His lips grabbing a hold of her lower one as the skin of their lips brushed each others. Hinata lay her hands on his chest, yearning more than anything to remove his clothing and be bare with him once more. She felt as his hand began to fiddle with her hair and was making its way around to the back of her head...
A loud thud startled the two as they heard the muffled voices of Kabuto and Sakura approaching. They immediately pulled away from each other as Kabuto's voice was distinguishable. "Sorry, I didn't see that crate there! This mist is fogging up my glasses." Kabuto was the first to walk about rubbing the back of his head. "All done Lord Orochimaru." Kabuto spoke rather cheerfully. Sakura gasped fro air as the stench of blood had begun to take effect on her too.
"So since we aren't going back to report to the Mizukage, I assume we will be staying at another underground inn?" Hinata asked the two men. Orochimaru suppressed a laugh but said nothing as he began to lead the way to their temporary stay. Kabuto looked at him rather amused, already he deciphered what Orochimaru had in mind. "I-is that a yes or no? Or...wait, why won't you tell us?!" Sakura seethed at the irritating and highly unnecessary mystery behavior she discovered Orochimaru was so fond of displaying. It was obvious neither were going to get an answer any time soon. Hinata patted Sakura to calm her before following behind the two men, the exasperated pink hair kunoichi shook her head and followed along.
Its still technically wednesday. Enjoy the new chapter. Stay Awesome~! :3