Chapter 42
It wasn't hard to find the place; it was infamous in these parts. A fortified town nestled within a valley. As they descended into it, they found it was not empty- well, not empty per se. It simply lacked any signs of life. Corpses were piled high, hundreds of them, with the ground unable to soak up the dark red blood in time. Making many puddles.
The moon hung high above, casting an eerie glow over the town's ruins. The air was thick with a pungent smell of death. Pakura and Konan stood side by side, gazing at the lone figure perched atop the heap of corpses. He appeared spotless, not a droplet of blood or dirt on him, merely observing them with interest.
"How interesting," Orochimaru remarked as he regarded the two kunoichi. "I didn't expect to meet you both here. I'm curious to know who I should thank for this honor. Iwagakure? No, they despise Konoha, but I have little to do with them, so they'd rather leave me alone. Kumogakure? What reason would they have to hire you for my assassination? I simply can't figure it out."
"Why do you assume it isn't Konohagakure? If I were in your position, that would be my first guess," Pakura said, genuinely curious.
"Hah," Orochimaru responded, seeming disappointed by her question. "How misinformed you are. It's laughable. Konoha wouldn't stoop so low as to hire anyone for their dirty work- definitely not the Third Hokage. He would also know that such a method wouldn't work on me; only he could kill me. No other shinobi would be able to."
"You live in a well," Konan replied. "The world is far more dangerous than you can imagine. There are shinobi with powers that far exceed your understanding."
"Words from a little girl," Orochimaru dismissed her comments lightly. "Though, you do look familiar. Yes, I remember now. You're that brat I spared on behalf of Jiraiya. After all, your trio was unique. All grown up now. Jiraiya was quite heartbroken when he thought you had died. As I suspected, Jiraiya is indeed a fool for bringing you under his wing."
"The past is the past." Konan felt slightly unsettled by Orochimaru's words, but she quickly regained her composure. "I came to offer you a position in Akatsuki."
"Hmm, did the other two survive as well?" Orochimaru didn't respond right away. "I've heard about your small group. It has a number of renowned members, to my knowledge. A group of fools uniting, but for what purpose? There is safety in numbers. But what can you offer me?"
"Tch, you have an inflated sense of self-worth." Pakura wanted to eliminate him quickly and move on. "We can offer you mercy if you join us, or we can dispose of you now and claim your bounty. The latter option is more appealing to me, though."
"The forsaken hero of Suna," Orochimaru continued to look down on them. "I must say, you, with your unique Kekkai Genkai, are quite intriguing. I would love to dissect you and see how your body works. Don't worry, I'll leave you alive. I have my methods."
"And I have mine." Pakura had no intention of holding back any longer.
Flames erupted from thin air, engulfing Orochimaru as he melted away into a puddle of mud. Before she realized what had happened, she discovered she had fallen into a trap. Darkness suddenly enveloped her as she felt the wet and sticky substance beneath her feet. It was difficult to move; the liquid pressed against her, instantly weakening her.
But it was far from defeating her. She simply incinerated everything around her, leaving nothing behind, scorching it with extreme heat. Before long, the insides of the giant snake that had swallowed her evaporated, and she walked out into the open to find Konan above her, her white paper wings keeping her aloft.
"Kukuku," the sinister laugh echoed through the air as Orochimaru emerged from the ground. "How impressive. I don't know which of you is more interesting. I wonder how many secrets I could uncover after dissecting your bodies."
"How will you do anything when you are just a pile of ashes?" Pakura was getting angry.
Her hands moved, and heat gathered around them. The air shimmered as waves of heat distorted it. Tiny embers danced on the tips of Pakura's fingers as she prepared for another strike. This time, she would burn Orochimaru from the inside, making his death as painful as possible. But before she could move, Konan landed before her and Orochimaru.
"Wait," her voice was commanding enough to pause Pakura's actions.
"Hmm?" Orochimaru didn't move, only brushing a bit of dirt from his robes as he looked at Konan with interest. "Why would you pause when it was getting interesting?"
"There is no reason for us to fight. I apologize for my partner's rash actions. There is nothing to be gained by clashing with one another."
"You think yourself so intelligent, don't you?" Orochimaru smiled in amusement. "Do you see something like violence beneath you? Tell me, in all your wisdom, what can you offer me for accepting your proposal?"
"We know about all your experiments, your passion for knowledge, and your pursuit of the unknown. We can provide you with resources that you cannot obtain anywhere else."
"Everything has its price," Orochimaru humored them. "What would you want from me in return?"
"Your knowledge of forbidden ninjutsu, your strength when needed, and loyalty to our cause."
"Is that what you were offered too, Hero of Sunagakure?"
"Why should I tell you anything?" Pakura replied.
"Fair enough, we all have our reasons for the actions we take, don't we? And I must say, you are quite persuasive. It would be a lie to say I'm not interested. I would love to learn more from you. Yet, you are so naïve- laughingly naïve. You see, unlike you, I have realized what humans truly are."
"What the hell are you talking about?" Pakura was creeped out by this bastard the more he talked. "Just get to the point, or I will get back at burning you alive."
"We are broken. All of humanity is broken; it's just the way we were created. So close to perfection, yet never achieving it. But unlike you, I learned that perfection is a myth. Well, I had a good teacher. Therefore, I feel compelled to impart this wisdom to you, who are so unfortunate not to realize it yet."
Shuriken made of paper fell from above with such force that they pierced through everything in their path. Leaving dozens of cuts on Orochimaru's body, blood soon covered him as he was forced to his knees. Konan continued to stand in place, not moving a finger. Looking down on a legendary Sannin.
"The moment you saw me, you should have realized that joining our organization wasn't a request but a demand. Failure to accept it will result in death."
"Embracing your flaws is what enables you to grow. When you stop resisting the notion of your brokenness, you come to understand that it makes you unique- one of a kind in the world." Orochimaru's body began to contort as his mouth opened wider and wider, before an arm emerged from it, followed by the rest of his body. "Only once you realize this can you truly evolve into your best form."
"You certainly love to hear yourself speak," Pakura said, flicking her wrist and directing her attack towards Orochimaru. "Let's see if you can regenerate your burned insides."
In response, Orochimaru spat out a blob of purple liquid. With her extensive knowledge of poison, Pakura quickly recognized it by its smell and moved to dodge it while maintaining her assault. Just a little more, and her flames would incinerate Orochimaru from the inside, bringing it to an end.
Steam rose from Orochimaru's body as the blob of venom landed on the empty ground. It was over, or at least it should have been. However, Pakura's technique didn't evaporate the entire body, and it didn't leave behind only steam. It was a water clone, but how and when had he managed to create it?
"It was that way from the very beginning."
Orochimaru answered her question as he emerged from the puddle of venom, his arms stretching out to catch Pakura. But he was stopped by a wall of paper- rather, explosive tags. Pakura barely managed to escape the blast radius. When the smoke cleared, she saw that Orochimaru's hands were blown to pieces, leaving only empty sleeves up to his elbows.
It was the first time Pakura faced such an opponent, even if their powers were far superior to his. His experience was much greater than theirs. He moved five steps ahead, calculating and predicting their actions. With his vast assortment of ninjutsu, he had countless ways to counter them.
But this was as far as he would go. Pakura aimed for the finish; he wouldn't be able to harm anyone else again. As Pakura reached to sever his head, Orochimaru only smiled in amusement, and at that moment, she realized that she had fallen for this trap once more. From the empty sleeves, dozens of snakes shot out, biting her flesh.
And just as she was about to push through them, he spat out a sword, stabbing her in the chest. Air left her lungs as she tried to gather her strength. Paper shuriken pushed Orochimaru away from her. And Pakura fell to the ground. Coughing up blood and feeling the gaping hole in her chest.
"Only a fool would try to win through force, when a victory can be achieved through deception," Orochimaru said, as Pakura forced herself to glare at him. "Like I said, you two are just girls who know nothing of what war is."
"I agree," Konan replied, as from beneath Orochimaru's feet, countless explosive tags emerged, encasing him in a ball. "And when the time comes, you should strike without hesitation."
Pakura barely managed to get underground to avoid the explosion. She couldn't die, not yet. She still has a debt to repay and a debt to settle. Luckily, the wound didn't pierce her heart or lungs, so stopping the bleeding was enough to save her life. She burned the wound to seal it off.
"You used me," Pakura said as she emerged from the ground and looked at her partner.
"Otherwise, I wouldn't have the chance to finish him," Konan replied, not caring for Pakura's emotions. "Will you be alright?"
"Tch," Pakura slowly stood up. "I survive. He probably thought that the venom would finish me off. Too bad, I have longs since grown tolerance to every poison and venom in existence. Did it finish him?"
"There was no escape," Konan replied.
"Kukuku," Pakura sighed as she heard the eerie laugh. "I see now. I thought it was something that fool Jiraiya created. For his foolishness, he is quite creative with his jutsu. But now I know, it's something unique to you alone. This paper is not only infused with your chakra but also with your DNA. I guess it is dead skin. Very impressive."
As the smoke cleared, it revealed Orochimaru standing in the middle of thousands of burning and smoldering snakes surrounding him. There wasn't even a wound on his body. And he ignored the world as he was absorbed by the paper he was holding between his fingers. Pakura could not believe it.
"You should have stuck me while I was overconfident in my victory," Konan calmly replied. "Why did you not. Now that I know your specialty is unexpected and fast attacks to catch your prey by surprise, I understand why you're so effective. Like a true snake. And since I know it, it won't work on me anymore."
"Because I already achieved my goal," Orochimaru replied, putting the paper in his pocket. "I gathered information about your abilities and even got DNA to further my research on them. Continuing this won't gain me anything."
"All the more reason for me to finish you now, before you become an obstacle in the future."
"Konan," Zetsu revealed his head from the ground, only for Konan and her to see and hear. "There is no point in continuing this; retreat."
"If you will stand in our way, we will eliminate you," Konan gave one last warning to Orochimaru before taking Pakura and flying away.
Pakura felt quite pathetic about being carried by this woman, who had been willing to sacrifice her just a few moments ago. She underestimated Orochimaru. He was on a different level, with far more experience and arsenal under his sleeves. Still, it wasn't a total loss for Pakura, as she learned a great deal about him and Konan.