Naruto : Monsters

For better or for worse, Orochimaru had always been a pure child. He threw himself fully into anything he did fully, either loving something completely or not at all. No half measures, he would obsess or disregard, no middle ground.

...

Then the day came when he stood before his parent's grave, both lost on the same day, and Orochimaru had come face to face with the death for the very first time. Not the risk of dying, but the inevitability of it all. The inescapable fate that awaited us all in the end.

It terrified him, and that purity was twisted into something else.

What is this?

Ohh! That's the skin of a white snake, it must have been hard to find.

I've never seen something like this.

Haha, to be honest same with me. That's something very rare you don't get to see often.

...Why is it white?

Hmm...no one really knows. No one even thinks about that. For a long time now, the white snake has symbolized the image of good fortune and rebirth.

Good fortune and rebirth…

The fact that you found it here at this grave might be some sign. Maybe your parents have been reincarnated somewhere...so that someday...they may meet a grown up you.

...When will that be?

...That I don't know.

'Perhaps,' Hiruzen thought to himself the thousandth time, 'if he hadn't said that to him he would not have become what he is today.'

How could he have known the consequence of his actions? He had been trying to comfort a grieving child. If he only knew how his words would end up spawning a monster, he would have held his tongue.

And now, a second child appeared before him, a perfect reminder of his greatest mistake. Was this a chance for him to fix past mistakes or a warning that history would repeat itself?

Hiruzen glanced at the cat sitting on his desk, who was staring blankly at the wall, ignoring their presence. It did not slip his mind how this tiny cat had reacted to the boy's presence. 

While the Kyuubi may have been sealed and its presence muted, for a Nekomata to react so badly to a child of only twelve was unnatural. It cemented to him like nothing else could have that he had not been merely imagining the similarities between the two and that the boy may hold more in common with his old student than just the obvious.

Were it not for the clear attachment the boy held for Naruto, he may have been more worried.

It didn't take a genius to see the incredible level of genuine affection the pair shared for each other, it was as clear as the sun in the sky for anyone who bothered to look. And he had been watching the pair for over six years now. He had no doubt in his mind that either one of them would rather cut off their own hands than harm the other.

It was for that reason, above all others, that had Hiruzen convinced that the boy was no danger to the Leaf. So long as he had Naruto to keep him anchored, along with his family, he doubted he would ever need to fear Hikaru walking the same path his old student had.

Besides, Konoha had more than one mentally unstable Shinobi in their roster that still remained loyal to their home. Setting Danzo aside, anyone who met Maito Gai could attest to that. But even that knowledge couldn't completely erase his fears. He knew all too well how cruel the world can be.

What would happen if one day, Hikaru were to return to the village to discover he had lost his family to an attack?

What would happen if he woke up one day to find that Naruto had fallen in battle?

Would Hiruzen find him standing before a grave, like he had once before, consoling another grieving child? And this time, would a white snake happen to shed its skin on the grave?

No matter how unlikely it was to happen, Hiruzen could never allow that come to pass. Konoha had already spawned one abomination under his watch, he will not allow it to create a second. It may have been that very reason above any other that had swayed Hiruzen. The reason why he allowed himself to be persuaded by Danzo and granted him his request to take over the boy's training.

If there was anyone who knew how to tame a monster, it was him.

Clearly, Hiruzen could not trust himself to handle it. Not after the last time.

"But his resemblance to my old student is not why we are here today." Hiruzen said, returning to the topic at hand with a shake of his head. Raising his eyes to Danzo's, who remained seated across him, who appeared to be unmoving as a bolder and every bit as unfeeling.

Seeing the determination in his face, Hiruzen knew what must be done, no matter how much he wished it was not so.

"Very well," Releasing a tired sigh the Hokage gave his reluctant consent to his oldest friend, sinking back into his chair. "I will leave this matter up to your discretion."

Danzo nodded solemnly. "Thank you."

And like that, the tense atmosphere began to dispel.

Picking up his pipe from where he had abandoned it on his desk, Hiruzen's well-practised fingers swiftly pushed a pinch of tobacco into it before lighting with a flick of his fingers and a bit of elemental manipulation. Raising the lit pipe to his lips, he took a long drag before puffing out, letting the smoke drift around him in a comfortable haze. Danzo on the other hand just remained seated, cane held in his hands, content to remain where he was.

The two friends fell into an easy, familiar silence.

For all the unpleasantness of the topic that passed between them, both now and over the many years that they worked with one another, the two trusted each other in a way that could not be put in words. Enough that these two veterans of war could completely relax in the other's presence.

How could they not after all they've been through? They have fought by the other's side too many times, trusted one another with too many secrets not to feel comfortable in the other's company.

For a moment there they sat, two friends, both old, one bathed in the morning light shining through the window behind him, the other, seated across from him, hidden in the shadow cast by the former.

Just as they have always been.

"If you'll excuse me," after a long time Danzo stirred. Pushing himself up with the use of his cane, he gave his Hokage a causal bow, "I still have some final preparations to finish before Hatake leaves."

With a nod of dismissal from his old friend, Danzo turned around and began to hobble towards the door, the rhythmic tapping of his cane following all the way there. His hand had already gripped the door's handle by the time the voice reached him.

"Danzo." Pausing, Danzo turned to look over his shoulder at Hiruzen, who was leaning back in his chair, eye facing upwards, staring at the drifting smoke, pipe in hand. "What if they die?"

"Then," He stated calmly, as if he was speaking of the weather rather than the lives of children under his care, "we will have learned something of use - that they never had what it took to meet our exceptions. 

If that proves to be the case then it would be better to learn of this now, than waste more time and effort training a worthless investment. Live or die, either way," he turned back to the door and pulled open, "we would have gained something of value from this."

And with that, Danzo, the Shadow of the Hokage, stepped out of the office.

Now alone, Hiruzen remained seated in his chair, staring up at the ceiling with a vacant expression.

If he could he would have probably remained like that for the remainder of the day, dwelling in his own thoughts, but unfortunately, that was not to be. Even with everything that was happening with Team 7, he still had other issues that required his attention.

There was never any rest for either the wicked or a Kage.

So with another tired sigh, the weary old Hokage straightened up in his chair and went back to work. But before he could turn his attention to papers piled on his desk, he felt something nudge his arm. Looking downward, he spotted Tora bumping her head against his arm, either trying to provide comfort or simply demanding attention.

He never could quite tell with cats.

Nevertheless, grateful for the distraction she provided he chuckled and gently reached out to scratch behind one of her ears, earning a delighted purr from the unblinking cat.

"Do you ever feel like you've been shafted?" He asked his feline companion, his thoughts lingering on his recent encounter with Danzo.

The cat seemed to immediately still under his fingers, freezing in place so completely it almost was as if someone had hit the pause button. Slowly, Tora swirled it's head and turned its wide-open eyes to stare up at the Hokage with a deadpan look.

"Oh, right." Sarutobi grimaced, "Sorry."

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