Well damn, that didn't work out very well, Orochimaru bitterly thought. He looked behind him and rolled his eyes at the ANBU trying to pursuit him. Did they really think they could catch him?
He mentally sighed and made a clone, it would be his distraction while he got to his lab. The dark-haired Sannin mentally swore in bitterness, he was already done with making the mini Tsunades and Dans! There were a total of four minis and they were about to be born any day now!
His mind raced as he thought about what he was going to do.
Unfortunately, he wasn't chosen as the Yondaime. That fell to Jiraiya's prodigy student, Namikaze Minato. He didn't feel that sour about though. Really! He didn't mind it at all. It wasn't like he had been working for that position for longer than the blond's been alive!
Okay, so maybe he was a bit sour about it, but he had another priority, the minis.
The four had been carefully cultivated in test tubes for about nine months now. It had taken him two decades to figure it out and it was somewhat late now.
He cursed himself for his arrogance. He didn't think anybody would find out that he had gotten a tad bit out of line. He just needed to know if environment and how people were raised affected results in certain tests! He was even courteous enough to use people who were better off as test subjects!
Okay so maybe the fifty or so babies weren't the smartest idea but they were the children of prostitutes! Their futures would forever be tainted due to the fact that their mothers were women who sold their bodies for money! And yeah, so maybe they all kinda-sorta...died, but it was for a good cause! He just needed to know if it was possible to have people use Wood Release!
The tapping of footsteps far off in the distance alerted him that he didn't have much time. He arrived in his main laboratory and grabbed all the scrolls he could, sealing them away within seconds (he mentally thanked Jiraiya for teaching him some sealing techniques). When he approached the four minis, he couldn't help but smile with sourness at his failure and success.
Tsunade was long gone and Jiraiya only showed up to visit his student. Sarutobi-sensei had only talked to him every now and then; otherwise, everyone else seemed to ignore him.
He was still human, he had a heart that beat and sanguine blood that flowed through his veins. Orochimaru wasn't much of a talker, but that didn't mean he hated people. He was a prodigy and he had figured out at an early age how important it was to keep your friends with you.
When he sensed the tell-tale sign of his sensei's chakra, he sighed in despair at the upcoming confrontation. Fighting with those four minis wasn't going to be an easy job, especially when you're fighting the God of Shinobi...
He needed a plan to get out of here with those four safely. It was then that he dearly wished he had some of Jiraiya's skill with improvising on the spot and his creativity. How was he going to get out of here alive?
His mind raced and he thought of Manda, the Snake Boss, before furiously shaking his head and berating himself. Manda would want some hundred or so sacrifices, something he didn't have.
The Sannin looked at his lab once more and took in every detail. He had been multi-tasking, destroying any kind of information about him and secrets he'd rather others didn't know. His gaze fell unto a shelf full of information he had been gathering for Konoha.
It would be too fishy if he left them all there, but he still wanted to see his fruits of effort develop. He compromised and took some while leaving others. He'd leave the ones he took with him around the place and in different locations.
When he came back to the four, he shifted his weight, thinking what he could possibly do with four twenty-two pound babies.
He couldn't carry them all but he didn't want to leave any behind either! He was pretty much their uncle and godfather! It also wouldn't be fair if he picked favorites either since he liked them all on an equal level!
He damned his current situation.
"Orochimaru," a stern and disheartened voice called out.
The man stiffened and quickly tried to cover what he had been intensely concentrated on. It was a good thing that the test tubes were short and that the unborn babies were somewhat small. "Sensei," he responded back, hoping that his anxiety and nervousness didn't show in his voice.
The Sandaime was in his traditional ninja attire and he held a bo staff pointed at Orochimaru. His old eyes were grim and showed disappointment, something the black-haired man tried to ignore. "It has gone on long enough, Orochimaru. You've done terrible things and have created more harm than good."
Lies, he thought furiously. He had done plenty of good things! Honestly, it was as though they had completely forgotten that he had discovered a new kekkei genkai in a Kiri criminal or that he had helped to create new and improved ANBU masks! Half of those mask-wearing buffoons would be dead to the poisonous chemicals I had in my labs had I not create a mask which blocked poisons! Ungrateful ninja...
He smiled coldly at his sensei. "Will you ignore that I had a large hand in improving Konoha, sensei? What would this village be if I hadn't dissected bodies of enemies or found out where illnesses were coming from?" Orochimaru wondered if he could get away with summoning a snake or two to swallow the test tubes. He figured he'd risk it. It was a lot easier to escape one person instead of a platoon of ANBU, even if that one person was his sensei.
Sarutobi narrowed his eyes when he sensed his ex-student use chakra. What was he up to?
Figuring that now was a better time than never, the old ninja struck out at Orochimaru. He didn't want to hurt the man he had thought of as a son, but he couldn't let him get away with just a slap on the wrist.
The Snake Sannin's eyes opened in shock when he saw the bo staff headed straight for him. He mentally ordered the snake to hurry up and jumped out of the way to avoid being injured.
It was then that he noticed the snake had half of a test tube down its throat and then the sound of shattering glass filled the room.
The ebony-haired man felt his chest throb with sharp pain and cold realization. He knew what he'd have to do. Swiftly, his hands moved and he blew out a stream of fire hot enough to melt the glass and evaporate the life liquid inside. He felt a small stab of guilt wash over him, but he buried it away and focused on getting out of his lab. His sensei couldn't find out what he had been doing. No one but himself could know. He checked the snake with a satisfied smirk when the snake nodded in affirmative at swallowing the tube.
Taking advantage at his sensei's confusion, Orochimaru bid him goodbye with a hidden heavy heart. "Goodbye sensei. Thank you for being hesitant in taking my life."
Before Sarutobi could reply, Orochimaru was off and had his snake summons take care of anyone who got in the way.
He looked back at Konoha when he thought it was safe. It was somewhat sad that the day he defected from Konoha was the very day the sun and sky decided to put on a spectrum of colors.
From the top of tree branches, he saw the rising sun slowly climbing over the Hokage Monument and watched in awe as the dark sky full of stars melted into lazy streams of gold and orange. He couldn't help but chuckle bitterly at the gods. He checked once more and when he decided it was safe, summoned the snake that swallowed the tube back.
The snake spat out the tube which landed safely in his arms before dispelling itself. Orochimaru didn't care much about the rudeness of the snake, it was nothing new.
He looked at the baby in the tube and noticed that it was the girl that looked the most like Tsunade feature-wise. He sighed at his loss of the other three but brightened up at the thought of knowing that he had postpone the end of the Senju line even if it was through unsightly solutions.
She had small wisps of golden hair and he noted with pride at the possible beauty she would turn into. As of now however, she was...cute.
He shook his head and rid himself of such silly thoughts. When he noticed a small twitch in her right hand, he smiled triumphantly. Now he just needed her to wake up from the test tube and it would be one step towards success. It was only a total success once she survived for a year without any problems.
Another few twitches and then he had exactly what he wanted and desired for almost two decades.
Small little eyes started opening and her little body twitched in response as nerves and muscles reacted to the new world.
Orochimaru jumped down from the tree and landed on the forest ground. There, he emptied the remains of the fluid meant to act as the amniotic fluid in pregnant mothers onto the floor and covered it with dirt and a few chemicals he always had on hand. Once the girl was out of the glass casing, he would seal it and head the opposite direction. He knew Inuzukas were probably searching for him along with the Aburame. The Hyuga probably were too, but he didn't care as long as they didn't see him or the baby.
He took out a scroll which held baby materials and unsealed a towel with some water.
Just to be safe, he summoned a few bunshins and had them scatter around; it wouldn't do to be interrupted.
When he opened the glass tube, he was immediately met with a loud wail. His eyes widened in shock and he quickly implemented a silencing seal while hurrying with cleaning the newborn.
He was really glad he had read those parenting books now. A diaper was unsealed followed by a pink cap and matching clothes. He remembered how he had to use a henge to buy the baby items with an amused hum. It was damn embarrassing having to be a woman but it worked well and he was proud of it (although he'd never tell a single soul about this).
When he was finished with dressing her and delivering the tests needed to be done, he sighed in relief and cradled the newborn girl.
She was the epitome of softness reincarnated, he noted with surprise. This was the first time he had held a child and he was amazed at the warmth that grew in his chest. Orochimaru realized with a small chuckle that she had already taken a place in his heart, right next to Tsunade and Jiraiya even.
He shook his head and sealed the tube before doing a small wind jutsu to rid of his and her presence. He bent his knees and held the tired bundle in his arms somewhat tighter, careful not to squeeze too tight. He wasn't Tsunade, but he was still strong.
Without a single glance he leapt up into the branches. The Snake Sannin paused and looked down, what was her name again?
He had thought hard about their names, something he decided he wanted to mean something special. He fumbled around mentally while being swift and fluid on the trees as he deemed multi-tasking necessary. His mind recalled the tree she had awakened under and remembered with a tug at the corner of his lips what he had chosen.
He stopped and looked at the sleeping girl with a rare, soft smile. "Welcome to the world, Keiko-chan."
Thank you very much for following this little story of mine, Littlevbigdreams and S.R.457, and a special thanks to you, S.R.457, for reviewing and favoriting! I'm sorry I haven't updated in some time, I should have the next one up by Friday or next Monday.
Well, that's all I've got to say for now. Thanks for reading and I hope you'll enjoy the next chapter!