Machinery hummed over the subtler buzz of electrical currents.
Come to think of it, Takara had never been surrounded by more mechanical artifice than she was in this laboratory. There was something unsettling to her about white noise that didn’t come from the natural world.
She tried to comfort herself with the excuse of her rural upbringing.
Where was this doctor Lord Orochimaru had instructed her to meet with? She didn’t have a clock, but it had to be well past her 8 AM appointment time.
She focused her abnormally acute hearing down the hall, trying to map out any approaching footsteps.
Nothing nearby.
Something markedly closer, however, did catch her attention. The sound was fairly regular, but unmistakably organic.
The sound led her ears to the other side of the laboratory, where its source was revealed.
A rabbit—white, with red eyes and grey, lopped ears—sat in a cage.
The creature’s entire body wiggled in time with its twitching nose.
Its heartbeat and breathing pattern, occasionally punctuated by the sounds made by its digestive tract, now held her undivided attention.
The rabbit paused upon noticing her and brought its ears forward.
“You’re listening to me too, aren’t you?” she asked the fluffy creature.
It resumed its steady wiggling as if to answer.
What a shame for it to be in such a small cage. She wondered if anyone would miss it if it were to disappear.
The doctor was still nowhere to be heard.
Takara padded closer to the cage, quietly opened the latch, and withdrew the remarkably soft creature.
“Look at you,” she whispered, petting its face and ears.
The rabbit chattered its teeth in satisfaction and settled into the crook of her arm, pleased with the attention.
She pressed her face into the rabbit’s soft fur and continued to take in its gentle, reassuringly organic sounds.
At this rate, she could probably sneak it back to her room and still get back before the doctor arrived— and if she was late? Well, he hardly had the right to say anything.
Takara stole into the dark, stone corridor with the rabbit nestled in her arms. Her own heart began to pound as she considered her clandestine objective.
The rabbit began to squirm and kick its feet against her ribs as it sensed tension. Takara tried to re-establish her hold, but it quickly kicked itself free and bolted down the dark hall.
Takara followed, but soon lost sight of it. Nonetheless, down the seemingly endless sandstone corridor she went, following the aural trail of its vital signs and scanning the ground for anything white and fluffy.
She soon recognized a second set of vitals, much louder and lower than those of the rabbit, and accompanied by human footsteps.
“Looking for this?” A voice asked flatly.
The young man who appeared before her wore an expression that matched, as well as a lab coat and round spectacles.
The rabbit was nestled into a fluffy loaf in his arms, recovering from its sprint down the hall.
Was he…?
“Are you the doctor?!” She blurted out.
He frowned. “Yes. And this rabbit came from the central laboratory, didn’t it?”
Takara took inventory of his appearance. Despite his silver hair and glasses, he couldn’t have been much older than she was.
***
“Did you let it out?” He asked with a serious expression before looking her over and quickly averting his eyes.
Pale green eyes and a crop of wavy caramel hair, he thought. Just like her father. Far prettier though, with a delicate spray of freckles across her nose.
“You must be the Tengai specim—er… New recruit,” he continued. “Why don’t you come back to the lab with me so we can complete your physical and forget this ever happened?”
***
Takara took a deep breath in an attempt to summon whatever crumbs of gumption she could.
“Wait just a minute!” She interjected. “You’re the one I’ve been waiting for all morning. It’s rude to keep a patient waiting, and I’m sure Lord Orochimaru would agree.”
She took a step forward and extended her arms. “But… If you agree to let me take that rabbit, we can forget what transpired, and Lord Orochimaru will never know.”
The young doctor frowned.
Takara stepped closer, yet again.
“And yes… My name is Takara Tengai. May I know yours?”
“Kabuto Yakushi,” he said, passing the rabbit into her arms before pushing up his glasses. “You’ve got some real nerve, by the way, name dropping Lord Orochimaru. You should know I’m his right hand. And the researcher in charge of the project you’ve agreed to take part in.”
Takara smiled sweetly up at him as the rabbit settled back into her arms.
“Oh, is that so? Well. I’m pleased to meet you.”
Kabuto glared. Though Takara swore she could see a hint of a blush coloring his cheeks.
He sighed. “Come on, then. You’re going to need some hay to feed it.”