A/N: Apparently, I had gotten myself hooked on to other fandoms, and whatever spare time I could salvage from my revision got spent there. I am so freaking sorry!

But seriously, Avengers is really, really unhealthy for me, my results, and the rest of my existing fanfics. :x Well actually, I'd blame Tom Hiddleston. He shouldn't be so perfect. :/
Anyway, this is what procrastination on my homework and revision looks like. And I've got papers to take in less than a week. YAY.

Once again, this chapter is not only so-damn-freaking-long overdue, but also crappy, cause of the lack of practice I had in writing. Apologies. :x (Orochimaru is such a pain to write, I can't seem to keep him in-character.)

Also, if people actually still read this fic, updates will, and I emphasize, WILL, be more regular after December, when my major exams end, soo...look forwards to that, I guess?

Thanks to those who reviewed!
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and any of its characters.


Before…

She was no longer a naïve kid.

Both of Orochimaru and her were adults, so it would look natural if she were to take it that last night was one with no strings attached. That would give her the space to be nonchalant about that night.

As for Itachi, she have to think of that later.

One thing at a time, one shit at a time, girl, she told herself, a calming chant that filled her head.

Last night, she had cried.

She wouldn't break anymore than that.


Oh how the moon cry foul,
at the cold-hearted man,
with a black black heart,
and a soul to damn.

Does she not see the pain he face,
and the tears and the scars,
because they leave an invisible trace?

Dear sweet moon,
were you to stop crying,
perhaps you may see true,
the ones really hurting,
mightn't just be you.

~.*~.*~.*~.*~.*~.*~.*~.*~

Orochimaru's lips thinned as he leaned against the cold hard walls of the training grounds, the previous conversation with his most accomplished medic swirling in his mind like a premonition of an approaching storm, one that he was and will be unable to stop.

He withdrew a kunai from his sleeve, but the thrill was lost on him. Gone was the excitement he used to feel at the cool touch of the deadly weapon, at the prospect of an exhilarating hunt that he, the immortal-to-be, will always win.

His eyes narrowed to silts. What good is immortality, what good is knowing all the jutsus in the world, when he is unable to keep a girl, just a single human being, at his side without destroying her?

Orochimaru laughed, a mirthless chuckle as he brought his head up, staring at the dark ceiling of the grounds, seeing an equally shaded path ahead of himself.

He had so much, so much to lose, and there was nothing he could do.

Was this what it feels like, to be helpless?

How many times had he seen that expression, that pathetic look that never fail to amuse him, on the faces of his preys when they realize that there was no escaping their end?

And now here he was, thrust into the mercy of fate. The irony of it, oh how the gods must be laughing at him.

Pale fingers clenched around the handle of the kunai as the conversation played again in his head...

~.*~.*~.*~.*~.*~.*~.*~.*~

"Orochimaru-sama," Kabuto's greeting was terse and strained as he addressed his lord's arrival.

Orochimaru took the proffered report, glancing through the vitals of the test subject. As his eyes scanned through the details, he frowned before pinning Kabuto with a piercing look.

"Explain," he said as the threw the report on the table unceremoniously.

The medic grimaced a little, and that alone was enough to alert Orochimaru that something was not right. Kabuto had been with him long enough to know of his temperament and how to deal with it. That he would react as such, Orochimaru knew that the news, whatever it is, was not going to be good.

"In the previous lab and during the transportation of the subject, all vitals were as usual." Kabuto wet his lips as he prepared to ease the drop of the bombshell. "But two days after the subject was housed here, the signs became...abnormal."

Orochimaru crossed his arms, waiting for Kabuto to elaborate further.

"Aside form frequent muscle lethargy, there was also recorded short bouts of blindness and loss of sensory perception and function."

Orochimaru let his eyes drift over the empty parts of the data gathered. Loss of sensory perception and functions...that would explain the lack of recordings in some periods of the monitoring.

"And the cause..." Kabuto's voice slowly trailed off, and Orochimaru turned his gaze upon him.

"What of the cause?"

The medic's eyes darted away, and that made Orochimaru narrow his eyes, his voice lowering dangerously. "Kabuto, I will not ask again."

Kabuto met his lord's piercing gaze with difficulty. "The cause, I believe, is due to the close proximity with you and the rejection of your chakra. Even though the subject may have been able to survive the cursed seal, over time, the regular human body is apparently unable to contain a hostile foreign chakra, especially more so for one as modified and potent as yours. These are the results of the subject's system rejecting them, and the effects are only evident and present after the subject was shifted here"

Orochimaru felt as if the room grew several degrees colder. This cannot possibly be going where he thinks it is. Kabuto may be wrong yet.

"But this is the first case that we have seen, no?" Orochimaru's irises were a glint of dangerous gold, a warning to Kabuto should he take one misstep.

"I have gone through reports of others who have survived from the cursed seal," Kabuto said hurriedly, this time unwilling to make any eye contact with Orochimaru as he seek refuge in the reports on the table, reading through them as he spoke. "Kimimaro's stats are hardly reliable, due to the complication of his disease, but for the rest of the Sound Five, there were recordings of similar affects to the test subject in Tayuya. However, the monitoring of her condition was premature as shortly after the anomalies were discovered, she was sent to retrieve Sasuke, where she perished during mission."

"Kidomaru, Jirobo and Ukon. What of them?"

"Nothing of similar conditions were present in them. From what I have gathered from the test results of other labs, the subject's system, after surviving the curse seal, will act up in rejection only in an average and normal human body. Tests conducted have shown that systems with anomalies prior to the cursed seal will not undergo the rejection phase. That is the case for Jirobo, Kidomaru and Ukon, all of whom possessed abnormality before attaining the cursed seal. This is strongly believed to be related to their bodies being more receptive and adaptable to foreign chakra."

Orochimaru felt something sink within him. That means...

"Hence," the medic continued. "With the possession of a bloodline limit, Sasuke's condition is safe and unaffected by th-"

"Anko. What of her condition?"

Kabuto grimaced at Orochimaru's sharp tone. He had wanted to avoid that.

"Her condition has been aided and delayed by the long amount of time she had in Konoha being away from your presence. Furthermore, her body is trained and therefore more resilient compared to the test subject."

"But, considering that she was given the cursed seal for a longer period of time than the subject..." Kabuto steeled himself for the explosion he knew would come.

"It is only a matter of time before her present condition worsens, should she continue to remain h-"

Without warning, the wooden table splintered under the force of Orochimaru's grip. Kabuto's glasses cracked as a scalpel placed on the table struck him across the cheek, opening a fresh wound as Orochimaru's hand swept across the table in fury, sending the contents flying. Beakers and test tubes crashed to the floor as they broke and their contents spilled, littering glass splinters on the floor and solutions. Yet, some papers from the report remained on the surface of the table, as if in mocking of Orochimaru's inability to create a change in the situation.

"Leave."

It was all Kabuto could do, bowing politely before retreating form the room.

~.*~.*~.*~.*~.*~.*~.*~.*~

Orochimaru's bared his fangs at the mere memory of it, agitation ever so evident on his feature.

He had so much to lose, all because of one woman.

She was not suppose to mean anything. Was not ever supposed to mean so much. Since when did he become like this? So human...

So weak.


First off, yeah, that chakra rejection bit was just something I made up, it's not actually true for the manga. But I don't think it defy logic very much, so I hope it was pretty easy to swallow.

This is obviously an Orochimaru-centric and pretty angst-filled chapter, a little different from my usual Anko-centric style perhaps?

But I feel that his views are important for upcoming developments. (yes, it may come as a surprise to most but -hold your breaths people- I actually DO have the outline of the entire story, so it' really all about putting it in words. So worry not, this fic will be finished! :D )

I like to think that our dear snake lord can feel, just that he seldom show it. Hope that he was in-character, though I know that I've skated on thin ice in most parts -if not all- of this chapter.

Anyway, is this style more preferred? Or should I revert back to wholly centralizing around Anko?

Comments to improve and reviews are love~! :)