Well, I got two extra days with Pippa due to her flight being canceled to go back home. She's heading back home now. *sighs heavily* Long distance relationships are the worst. :'(

I found out Orochi has a bit of separation anxiety. I let Pippa hold him and I left the kitchen for a few moments, and apparently, he was searching for me. He always likes to be near me. Sure, he's not a dog, but he still has emotions. I don't know what people's deal is with snakes. Orochi's just a noodle with fat cheeks lol.

I've decided that I'm going to change a lot of chapters. Some will either get entirely rewritten or just revised depending. I have an awesome idea and I'm dying :D. But don't worry; it shouldn't mess up my update schedule. :)

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Naruto Shippuden. This is just for fun, no profit will be made from this (and I don't want to either). This is purely for my and the entertainment of Naruto fans.

Dedication: To my beautiful, amazing, intelligent, girlfriend Phillipa (Shadow Spirit Dragon-wolf) for being there for me through not only my writing (both fanfiction and my original story) but real life in general. You have been my inspiration and my support through everything.

Warnings: Violence, explicit sexual conduct (no rape!) homosexual relationship, relationship with a large age gap, struggles with belonging, self-hatred, obsession, self-harm, self-experimentation, human experimentation, mental disorders, a dark view of the "afterlife", (bonding of) pain and isolation, self-worthlessness, and male pregnancy.

Pairings: OroNaru, cannon pairings (except, obviously, NaruHina).

Summary: Sometimes, the deepest scars are the ones no one can see, but in a world moving into the light even the oldest inner wounds can be seen

Enjoy! :)

Chapter Thirteen: Crossings

Orochimaru

Telling Naruto about the secret I've been keeping for decades (because who would actually believe me?) Was a huge relief. I'm not sure if he actually does believe me, but he's not judging me. Not like Tsunade, Jiraiya, or Sensei would have. Perhaps I could have told Jiraiya. Perhaps he wouldn't have called me crazy, but he wouldn't have accepted it. We were just too different.

Naruto is offering to help me in my quest. But how far is he willing to go to help me? What am I to him? Truly? I wasn't expecting the offer, honestly. I was expecting a laugh and to be called crazy. Then again, this child has never been predictable.

And when I asked him why he was doing all of this, he said we were friends.

Friends…

When was the last time I actually called someone a friend? Jiraiya? That friendship faded as he did. (Or what people believe, but I believe he's still very much alive. Suffering. And I will save him!). Now I have a new friend. Jiraiya's student, godson, the son of the Fourth Hokage (who took my dream, but I never had any harsh feelings towards the man. It's not his fault, after all.) And, the saviour of the world. Naruto Uzumaki.

How did we get so close? I feel like I owe this child something. He's done nothing but help me. And for what? I have done nothing but cause this child misery. And yet… he wants to know me. He doesn't want anything from me. He wants to know who I am. Why I do what I do. I've never such a connection with anyone.

I watch the child. He's lying back in the grass, arms folded behind his head, staring up at the clouds floating by and the birds soar through the sky. What is he thinking right now? Is this as difficult for him as it is me? More so?

"Naruto," I say, breaking the silence surrounding us.

"Yes?" he asks, eyes shifting to me.

"There are some things I think you ought to know besides new jutsu."

"Which is?"

"Well, one is going to bore you, and the other is going to excite you. So which one do you want to hear about first?"

"The exciting one, of course!" he scoffs, sitting up.

I chuckle. "Very well." I open my mouth, summoning Nagi, my gorgeous black mamba, who keeps Kusanagi safe and ready for me to use.

"Hey what the hell?!" Naruto exclaims.

"Relax," I say, taking the hilt of my sword, and pulling it gently out of my snake's mouth.

She hisses softly as she returns.

"Why are you getting a sword out?"

"A sword? Child, this is no mere sword."

"Looks like one to me."

"It's Kusanagi. A legendary sword said to cut through anything. Well, except tailed beast chakra as I learned from our last battle. In any case, it's the only sword like it. It holds many magical properties. I did have a replica made for Sasuke, but it lacks the abilities of the original."

"Well, that's one cool sword and all, but why are you showing that to me?"

"Because," I say, standing up, "I'm going to show you the art of kenjutsu."

"What? Why? I already have my own fighting method. I don't wanna use a sword!"

"Did I say you had to? I'm not teaching you how to use one so you have to use one like I do."

"Then what's the point in this?"

"In the war, Kakashi fought against the Seven Ninja Swordsman of Kiri. After Zabuza was sealed, he had access to his sword and was able to wield it with ease."

"Okay? So what?"

"Have you ever seen Kakashi wield a sword?"

"Well, no…"
"Granted, when he was a child, he used one, but he stopped after a while."

"I still don't get where this is going," Naruto frowns.

"To be efficient in battle, you need to be able to execute everything possible. Even if you don't normally use a certain weapon or tactic, being able to do so when need be, is crucial."

"So, I have to learn how to use a sword for the off chance I may have to use one?"

"Correct."

"Cool! Let's get started!" Naruto exclaims, jumping up and down.

I chuckle. "Your enthusiasm amuses me. But before we get started, I believe you should know the "boring" part."

Naruto stops, glaring at me without conviction. "Do we really have to do the boring part?" he whines.

"Yes, in fact, it is much more important than teaching you how to wield a sword."

"More important? What's more important than learning how to fight better to protect my friends?"

"Knowledge."

"Huh?"

"Remember what I've said before: Knowledge is power. The more you know, the better chance you have at success."

"Yeah, but I don't like to do all that reading shit. And besides, what good will it do in the face of battle? Throwing out how to mix some weird chemicals up isn't going to save my ass from the shuriken flying through the air."

"Well, that depends, but I won't get into that. It is true you need to be psychically strong, but you must be mentally strong as well. Did you not learn anything from the Chunin exams?"

Naruto shrugs. "I barely remember that, honestly. It was such a long time ago."

"The scrolls. They talked about heaven and earth. Heaven for your mind and earth for your body."

"Yeah?"

"You have great psychical capabilities. Even more so than most due to your Uzumaki blood, the tailed beasts, and being a descent of Asura, gives you such power. And while that's great, you still need to sharpen your mind. You don't have to be a master at everything, but I think learning a few things will definitely make you an even stronger ninja."

"Well, I suppose. I mean what exactly do you want me to learn?"

"Learning isn't something one just chooses. You must find something that calls out to you."

"And if it doesn't? Reading isn't my thing, Oreo."

"There are other ways of sharpening the mind than just reading."

"Then what do you want me to do?"

"Observe me with one of my experiments."

"Umm… I'll pass."

"I'm not going to do that kind of experiment. I don't want to confuse you too much. It will be something simple."

"Okay, and what am I suppose to do exactly?"

"When I do the experiment, I'm going to go over what I'm going to do, then I'll do it, and I want you to tell me what I did and why the results were the way they were."

"Umm… okay? Can I take notes?"

"If you wish. Whatever helps you."

"What is the point in watching you experiment?"

"So you will learn."

"What do your experiments have to do with learning about how to be a great ninja? What can I actually take to the battlefield? On missions?"

"You will be able to process information faster."

"Seriously?"

"Indeed. It's important to view the world from all directions. I never said you had to be a scientist, but knowing about it certainly couldn't hurt. And besides, if you wish to help me bring my loved ones back, then science is definitely something you need to know. At least, the basics anyway."

"Well, alright then."

"Now then, which one do you want to start with?"

XXXX

Naruto

"Snake man sure is fattening you up."

"Huh? I don't eat that much!"

Kurama chuckles. "Your body and mind. He's taken a liking to you."

"Seems like it."

"Be careful."

Naturally, but even more so with Oreo. He's ruthless and deadly. Some would say he's up to something. I would have once upon a time, but now… now I feel he actually wants to teach me. And not for his own gain, not for bringing the people in his heart back (because that's just not going to happen). No, there's so much more to this.

Hidden behind the offer, are the acceptance of friendship and a thanks. More so the friendship. I believe each of what he's offering me: how to wield a sword and learning about science, is his way of telling me. The sword represents the power we have over each other. How I could kill him and how he could toss me to one of his summons. But more so, it represents the strength of our bond. The bond that's unbreakable. That keeps growing and becoming stronger with every waking moment.

And then there's the offer of teaching me about science via his experiments. He's kind of enough not to force me to watch him cut up a live human (because I'd honestly unleash Kurama and some of my other powers if he did). I'm sure we'll reach more advance experiments, but for now, he's keeping it simple. I have to wonder what he'll be doing. Honestly, I'm excited.

Offering that to me is a way of Oreo telling me thank you. Knowing I lack in the "heaven" department, it certainly was kind of him to offer to increase my intellect. Although, being a supposed genius and still being stupid is quite strange, honestly.

(And honestly, I still don't get how I'm a genius even though Oreo made perfect sense in his explanation as he always does.).

The gratitude he gave me isn't just for offering to help him. No, it runs so much deeper than that. Thank you for accepting him, helping him, talking to him, caring for and about him, being there for him. Things he just can't say. We just can't say.

I stare at him. How did we get this far? This man has been the sole instigator of the problems I've had in my lifetime, and yet, he helped me save everyone.

"Show me the experiment," I say.

His eyes widen slightly. I know he's shocking, but… I just want to know. And, I've been training. I could go on. But, I know how Oreo is. (And honestly, relaxing and taking breaks has helped me a lot, but why and how did he of all people change that about me?).

"Very well. Then follow me," Oreo says as we head inside.

I follow him into his lab. I look around. So many tubes, machines, bottles, jars, beds, tools… I shiver. It's so… creepy!

"Have a seat," he says, gesturing to the chair in front of a table.

I do, careful not to bump into anything. It could use some more light in here honestly.

Oreo walks to a glass cabinet pulling out some stuff, walking back over, setting everything down on the table in front of me, and sitting in the chair opposite of me.

"First, I'll explain what I'm going to be doing then I'll explain how I'm going to be doing it, and what these materials are."

I nod.

"I'm going to be changing the colour of fire."

"Changing the colour of fire? You can do that?"

"You most certainly can."

"Really?! That is so cool! I wanna see!"

"You will, but you must be calm. Getting overly excited in a lab setting is very dangerous."

"How come?"

"Because there are dangerous chemicals in here, and if they mix with another chemical, it could be disastrous."

"Oh, well that's not good," I frown.

"No it's not. Well then, there are two methods of doing this, but I prefer this method," Oreo says. He picks up a small jar. "This is 100g of cupric chloride. It will cause the flame to turn blue. It is one of the metals I'll be using."

"How does metal make fire turn different colours?" I wonder.

"When certain metals or metal salts are used, the input of the thermal energy from the fire excites their electrons. Since they can't stay in this excited state for long, they release a light in the form of energy to return to their more stable and grounded state."

"Huh?!"

"My apologizes, I get carried away," Oreo says, standing up. He goes to the other side of the room, coming back with a large scroll.

"A scroll? Are you summoning something?" I ask as he sits back down.

"Not quite," he says, unrolling the scroll.

"What the hell?" I gasp, staring at the weird blocks with letters and numbers. "What is this?"

"This is the Periodic Table of Elements. It took me a very long time to complete this, but it has helped me out tremendously."

"You created this?"

"This scroll, yes. I had to do a lot of research to label every element correctly."

"Oh wow. That's pretty cool, Oreo."

"Indeed. Now then, each of these elements are grouped together in certain categories then they're labeled by atomic number and mass. The atomic number, which is labeled right here," Oreo says, pointing to the top number, "is determined by the number of protons in an element."

"What is a proton?"

"Elements are made up of smaller components called atoms. That's the smallest form something can have. Inside of these atoms are protons, electrons, and neutrons. Protons have a positive charge, neutrons a netural charge, and electrons a negative charge. Protons and neutrons never change. They remain in the nucleus-the brain-of the atom."

"What about the electrons?"

"Well, you can manipulate them and create a totally different element. For example, did you know that the elements to create salt are extremely dangerous?"

"Say what? Are you serious?!"

"Indeed I am," Oreo says. He points to Na and then Cl. "Sodium and Chloride. Sodium is a dangerous metal and chloride is a dangerous gas, but when you put them together, they create table salt."

I frown. "How does that work? I mean if they're both dangerous then how are we eating it?"

"That's the beauty of science. The electrons share, and create something we can consume without immediate danger to ourselves."

"Share electrons? Why would they have to do that?"

"Atoms have to share electrons because an atom wants to be in its complete form. By having a full set of electrons, the atom is satisfied. Atoms are always on the hunt to steal electrons from others."

"Well, that's kinda mean! They need to get their own!" I pout. "Poor little atoms!"

Oreo chuckles. "Well, if these electrons were nice then we wouldn't have table salt, now would we?"

I grin. "I suppose not."

"Now then, back to the experiment," Oreo says, rolling up the scroll. "As I said before, the electrons in these metals will become excited and emit a light of energy. The colour depends on the metal used. In fact, minerals have been found with this very experiment."

"Really? That's cool!"

Oreo smiles, and slides the jars of metals? over to him. "Next we have 100g of lithium chloride, which will turn the flames red. 500 g of copper sulfate, which will turn it green. 500g of calcium chloride, which will turn it orange. 100g of potassium chloride, which will turn it purple. And finally, 500g of sodium chloride, or salt, which will turn it yellow."

I nod. "So what about all this other stuff?"

"Well, since I'll be working with dangerous metals and fire, then being safe is a must. So, that's why I have googles and gloves."

"But you have two pairs of each…"

"Do you want to get hurt? The other pairs are for you."

"Oh!" I laugh. "So what about the other stuff?"

"Well, I have something to put the fire in, so that's why I have this container. Granted, I'll have to wash it out good with every switch of metal, but it will do."

"Oh okay," I say, putting the gloves and googles on.

Oreo does the same. "Well then, are you ready to see some beautiful flames?"

Preview

Naruto

"No, Orochimaru," I say, taking his hand. It's so cold.

He looks down at our hands then up into my eyes.

I squeeze his hand. "You're not alone anymore."

"Not… alone?" he whispers.

"I'm here for you. I promise I won't abandon you. You're my friend, and I never abandon a friend."

Next update date: July 29th

I hope y'all enjoyed! Until next time :).