Tomorrow
Her laughter echoes through the hallways, causing him to unintentionally shudder, despite having heard her crow numerous times over the years. It’s like he instinctually dislikes her very presence, even when she is out of sight.
Just the mere idea of her being here, even if he doesn’t have to suffer her presence, makes his gut clench with discomfort, because he knows that even if he doesn’t see her, someone else is looking at her right now, and that thought is enough to send a wave of nausea through his system.
Because there is only one person that can lure her down these dark, endless hallways, and it’s the same one that has enticed Kabuto himself to throw any self-worth down the drain the second he sees that familiar pale finger beckoning him to come.
He wishes he could say that he at least doesn’t run like those other hapless fools Orochimaru has ensnared, but Kabuto rarely tells himself any lies so he can’t honestly claim that his steps doesn’t quicken when he feels the need to be by his master’s side.
It is a shame that this person, as well as all the others that catch Orochimaru’s eye, is gifted with skills that far outrivals Kabuto’s own.
It would be easier to handle if she was just a beautiful specimen that is pleasing to look at and nothing else, but Kabuto knows that such superficial qualities has never interested his master.
It is what he can gain for himself that intrigues the Snake Sannin the most and Orochimaru has no real use for a pretty face and a slender body when he is so enamoured with what he sees when he watches himself in the mirror.
Kabuto feels his teeth grind in annoyance as the laughter returns with force and he tries to hurry his steps to avoid confrontation but not even that small mercy turns out in his favour, because the next moment she is there, having rounded a corner and the laughter dies on her lips, her mouth turning into an obnoxious sneer.
She is not alone, Sasuke is with her, which makes her laughter seem even more disturbing, because she hates the brat just as much as Kabuto does, perhaps even more after she realised Sasuke was going to be Orochimaru’s next vessel.
She always believed that honour would be hers.
Even when Kimimaro was still alive, she always stubbornly held on to that belief.
She wasn’t wrong in per se, Orchimaru might have once briefly considered her, but then, as is always the case, his attention was caught by something new and more fascinating which means that he will forget all about those who look at him with hope in their eyes, those who don’t understand that his interest is a fleeting thing and very rarely returns once you’ve lost it.
Sasuke and Guren catch sigh of Kabuto at the exact same moment he stops in his tracks and is about to turn around again, fleeing back into the shadows.
Facing one of them in the mood he is in right now is bad enough, both of them is simply more than he can handle.
But Guren isn’t about to let him escape that easily.
She unleashes the usual jabs, the prickly thorns of their never-ending rivalry that slips past her lips while Kabuto seethes in reply.
Sasuke just snorts and shoves past them like he can’t be bothered by their immature antics.
As if he isn’t the actual kid around this place. As if he isn’t as full of vitriol as they are, just not about the same things.
With Sasuke it’s Naruto this and Itachi that, like a broken record. Kabuto is sick of it and wishes that Orochimaru would grow bored of it as well, but so far it hasn’t happened.
Sasuke is allowed to harp on about these two topics in all eternity it seems, which he gladly does when he isn’t busy demanding that Orochimaru pay him some attention and train with him as promised.
It’s the only thing that can get him to shut up about Naruto and Itachi for a little while. It’s the only thing he wants – the Snake Sannin’s attention – all the time.
Why Orochimaru tolerates such behaviour is a mystery, anyone else barking orders like Sasuke does would get their necks snapped or get them thrown into one of the dungeons, but for some reason Orochimaru finds Sasuke amusing in a theatrical, adolescent sort of way that few can rival, so he accepts it and simply smiles when Sasuke gives his surroundings one of those haughty looks and stomps off in a huff when something displeases him.
Oh, how Kabuto hates that brat.
He actually hates Sasuke more than he hates Guren until she utters a sentence that makes him want to pierce her eye with a kunai right on the spot.
“He has invited me over to his chambers tonight. If I play my cards right, I’m spending the night with him.”
Who “he” is, is no mystery. There is only one “he” who matters here, everyone else is just a supporting character.
Kabuto doesn’t know what to do with the molten lava of hatred that overflows his insides upon hearing this information, acid filling his mouth as he tries to reign himself in before he loses his sanity completely.
He knows his face betrays him, how can it not when this amount of anger is threatening to choke him?
She can tell, of course she can, and how she crows in pleasure at the sight, never growing tired of watching him bleed.
“I would ask if you’re jealous if it wasn’t so obvious just by looking at you,” she says and he wishes he could throttle her right on the spot.
The denial of being jealous is on the tip of his tongue but that would be even more embarrassing, denying something they both know to be true.
So he settles for a scathing look as he pushes past her, deeming her unworthy of a reply, the only petty retaliation he can come up with.
It is nowhere near satisfying but it is all he has right now.
“Hey watch it!” she yells as his shoulder hits her body with such force that she stumbles. But they both know that a childish shove is nothing compared to the ammunition she has thrown at him.
It keeps eating him up inside and he hurries his steps along the hallway to get away from her before he does something he can’t come back from.
Like trying to kill her.
He isn’t even sure he would win if it came down to it, but just the fact that he would even attempt such a thing on one of Orochimaru’s closest subordinates could very well be the last thing he does.
Kabuto is already suffering from his master’s displeasure after a few transgressions lately, he isn’t sure this kind of betrayal would be forgiven. Now that Orochimaru has Sasuke, and apparently Guren as well, he might finally consider Kabuto superfluous?
So instead of putting himself in even more trouble, he marches off without turning around and more or less flees so far into the tunnels that no one is going to bother him.
“It’s no surprise Orochimaru-sama fancies me more, all you do is stare at him like a hungry bird, too scared to reach out! It’s off-putting!”
Guren’s words echo across the walls as he hastens away from her.
At least she doesn’t attempt to follow.
When he eventually slows down enough to feel that he can handle himself again and think straight, that is what he does, carefully avoiding the reason behind his strategizing, simply focusing on the solution and it actually doesn’t take him that long to figure out what to do.
As far as schemes go, it isn’t even that intricate, simply a matter of creating a diversion for Guren and go behind his master’s back.
Nothing he hasn’t done before.
He won’t even have to get his own hands dirty if everyone acts like he suspects that they will.
So by late afternoon, after having managed to stay out of everyone’s sight, he catches up with one of the insignificant minions recently returned from Otogakure, one who still hasn’t managed to get himself involved in anything that would catch anyone’s attention.
Kabuto informs him that he needs to deliver an urgent message to Guren when she is alone, a message that is from Orochimaru himself.
The message will convey that she has been assigned on mission to go search for a man named Mizuki who was once granted a cursed seal from Orochimaru that made him able to transform into a state of enhanced strength and power.
It’s one of the many experiments Orochimaru never completed and it’s doubtful if he even recalls who Mizuki is, as his interest in him was so short-lived.
The only reason Kabuto knows about Mizuki, as well as his whereabouts, is because he’s a spy at heart and gathering intel is his what he excels at. His curiosity has always served him well, and turns out to be very useful today.
Regarding Mizuki, it all began with Kabuto finding some old scribblings in a notebook written in his master’s spidery handwriting, which then led him to someone who had heard a rumour that soon turned into a more detailed recollection which eventually unearthed a witness who could tell Kabuto all he wanted to know about the experiment.
After that, it was easy to track Mizuki down and find out more about him as well as the cursed seal.
The latest report states that the man is rotting away in some prison, which suits Kabuto’s plans just fine.
Mizuki is someone of no real importance, a curiosity at best, an unfinished experiment at worst, but since Orochimaru once granted him the gift of a cursed seal it might seem as if he holds some value in the Snake Sannin’s eyes, like a sleeper cell, waiting for a signal to spring into action.
At least that is what it will look like to Guren when she is being sent off to find him.
Kabuto is well aware that Mizuki is of no value to his master but all he cares about is to get Guren as far away from Orochimaru as possible before nightfall.
He will prevent her from talking to their master before departing and her failure to show up to their rendezvous will displease Orochimaru to such an extent that he is unlikely to summon her back anytime soon, and most definitely not to his bedchamber.
It is a petty plan, one Kabuto would feel embarrassed about if anyone knew of it, but it will achieve the result he is looking for, so he sends the minion off with his message to Guren, emphasizing that it is an order directly from Orochimaru, should she try objecting to the command.
Then Kabuto readjusts himself to his usual role as the shadow behind his master’s back, as if he was never gone, and the rest of the late afternoon ends up like numerous evenings before this one, with just the three of them, Sasuke buzzing in the background like a surly wasp, making his presence known without interacting too much and Orochimaru fully focused on some scrolls he has acquired, not saying much either, just reaching for his cup of tea once in a while or combing his fingers leisurely through his silky hair while keeping his eyes trained on what he’s reading.
He looks particularly tantalising tonight.
Even if Kabuto always finds Orochimaru irresistible, it is as if the threat from Guren has made him particularly aware of exactly how much he wants his master to himself.
Orochimaru is dressed in mauve-coloured silk that suits his pale skin and dark hair, it makes the golden colour in his eyes glimmer in the candlelight and Kabuto feels the inclination to reach out and touch, drag a finger along one of the pronounced cheekbones, across his lips, make them part under his touch.
He imagines his master’s long tongue draping itself around his finger, sharp teeth grazing sensitive skin, dampness enveloping his digit as he pushes it further inside, then withdraws again, back and forth, a sucking pop as the lips smack together.
Kabuto keeps staring, engrossed in his own fantasy until Sasuke, the intolerable pain in the ass, breaks the spell by opening his mouth and reminding everyone about his unwanted presence in the room.
“I thought I had grown used to your creepiness by now, but there is always a next level to it, isn’t there?”
Kabuto turns his eyes to glare at the brat who steadily glares right back.
Between them Orochimaru doesn’t bother to raise his head to acknowledge the interruption.
He doesn’t have to because they all know that Kabuto is the one Sasuke is referring to.
He is the only one Sasuke never bothers to use neither name nor honorific when addressing.
Orochimaru at least gets addressed by his name, as if they are familiar, he and Sasuke. Kabuto hates it and has never stopped berating Sasuke for omitting “sama” when talking to or about their master.
Orochimaru himself doesn’t care apparently, and that bothers Kabuto even more.
Because Orochimaru is usually all about respect and being treated with reverence, but when it comes to Sasuke, all rules are out the window.
Maybe they are closer than Kabuto is aware of? Maybe honorifics doesn’t apply to what they have.
All the venom he can muster up, both the one he felt for Guren earlier today, as well as the one he feels towards Sasuke at this exact moment, is sure to manifest in his eyes, even when shrouded by his glasses, but if Sasuke notices, he doesn’t show it, their eyes locked in a silent battle while the only sound in the room is the rustle of silk as Orochimaru reaches for his tea to take a sip.
The silence stretches like a poisonous mist in the room until Orochimaru finally sighs, waves his hand dismissively and they both reluctantly get up from their respective positions and begin to leave.
“Training at seven as usual,” Sasuke says as he reaches the door.
It isn’t a question and the audacity of the command makes Kabuto clench his teeth but Orochimaru simply hums absentmindedly, meaning that he might be there but that he might also stay in bed if he chooses to.
That’s the only reply he gives the boy who comes closest to bossing him around, a boy who should feel lucky for even being allowed in the presence of a legend, for getting away with his rude behaviour.
People have been killed for less, Kabuto is well aware, and behind the stubborn façade, Sasuke is too.
Outside, darkness is settling in for the night, very few stars are visible across the sky and the evening air is damp, almost humid, when Kabuto takes a walk by himself.
He thinks about Guren who must be well on her way by now, likely very displeased about her evening ending up somewhere completely different than inside her treasured master’s bedroom.
He would almost smile about it if he didn’t feel like he isn’t fully content, despite everything going according to plan.
He can’t put his finger on what it is, why he isn’t more pleased, but maybe it all comes down to the fact that she was summoned by Orochimaru in the first place.
He should be used to it by now.
There has always been a long line of people who for one reason or the other wants to be with the legendary Sannin, preferably inside of him but if that isn’t on offer, at least as close as physically possible.
Kabuto has long ago made peace with the fact that he is just the same and that he is driven by jealousy when he does everything he can to prevent anyone but himself to come near Orochimaru.
Sometimes he succeeds, he has developed the skill of being cunning over the years, but there are situations where he fails and it is eating him up inside every time that happens.
Like Sasuke for example.
No matter how much he might try, Kabuto can’t get rid of him.
He has to succeed eventually, things have been brewing between the three of them for far too long, but Kabuto is still not sure what such an ending would look like, so for now, he just has to continue enduring.
But in the meantime, it doesn’t mean that he has to tolerate other candidates vying for Orochimaru’s attention.
So getting rid of Guren should satisfy him, and yet he can’t seem to find the happiness to gloat about his success.
Maybe it’s because this feels like any other night out here, with Sasuke moping by himself in his room and Kabuto walking around restlessly while awaiting to be summoned by Orochimaru. There is nothing more agonising than having to wait.
But the hours tick by and no summons come.
Maybe Orochimaru is annoyed with Guren for standing him up, or maybe he has immersed himself in some book and has forgotten about everyone else?
When Kabuto has walked the hallways back and forth, tried to sleep but miserably failed and even decided to do some reading of his own without managing to catch a single word, he gives up and approaches Orochimaru’s door that is closed for the night.
He presses his ears to the door and tries to catch any sound coming from inside but naturally fails.
Orochimaru is a quiet sleeper, there is no reason for Kabuto to hear so much as a whisper from that room, and yet he remains standing in the same position far longer than necessary, just trying to catch something he knows won’t come.
He imagines the black hair fanned across the large pillow Orochimaru favours.
His master doesn’t sleep naked, he gets cold easily and prefers warmth against his skin, so he is probably dressed as well as wrapped up in the duvet.
If he is even asleep.
Some nights he just stays awake, engrossed in something, sometimes with nothing but his own thoughts to keep him occupied.
Those nights are the worst because he becomes tetchy and irritated afterwards and it takes a long time for him to snap back to his usual self again, almost as if he suffers from bouts of melancholia.
It’s been a while since that happened last, but there is never any foreshadowing before it happens so Kabuto has stopped looking for signs and methods to prevent it. He can only ride out the storm and wait for the episode to pass.
As he presses his forehead against the wooden door he takes a deep breath, trying to catch a waft of the familiar scent that he knows is non-existent outside of Orochimaru’s presence but that he craves as if it was air necessary for him to inhale in order to keep living.
Being in his twenties he is better at controlling his libido than he was during his teenage years when it sometimes felt as if Orochimaru could make him grow hard and leaking just by standing sufficiently close. All it took was a sidelong glance from those mesmerising eyes and Kabuto would have enough visuals to keep his hands and cock occupied for ages.
He has since managed to curb that physical impulse quite successfully and yet, tonight, when the relief of getting rid of Guren mixes with a longing for his master’s presence that he has deprived himself of almost all day, he can feel that desperate want he sometimes succumbs to when his willpower has grown weak and disturbed.
His thoughts linger on the way Orochimaru looked earlier tonight, features sharp yet eyes soft as they travelled across the page he was reading, long hair falling like a black river across his shoulders, down his back while the silky fabric shimmered faintly in the candlelight that sent large shadows across the walls, reaching for the other humans in the room but shying from the Snake Sannin as if his mere presence could chase them away.
Kabuto unceremoniously cups himself and then pulls his cock out, feeling it grow in his hand as he keeps leaning his head against the door, breaths growing heavier as his thoughts conjure more and more details inside his mind.
It doesn’t take long before he reaches climax and comes with a shudder all over the lower front of the door, white, treacly semen decorating the wooden surface while he stuffs a fist into his mouth to prevent himself from letting out a throaty moan.
Afterwards it takes a while for him catch his breath and his pounding heartbeat to calm down to a normal pace.
He tries to figure out if he’s embarrassed about what he has done but finds that he isn’t.
Instead, an anger he didn’t realise he was feeling has managed to rise to the surface.
It isn’t rage in its most violent form, he isn’t seething with it, but he knows that today’s events have angered him more than he has allowed even himself to acknowledge.
I do everything for him, everything and yet he invites that hag into his rooms instead of me!
The hurt of ingratitude stings and it is only with the upmost willpower that he doesn’t punch his fist forcefully against the door to relieve himself of the pain he feels as he remembers Guren’s pleased smirk as she announced her plans for the night.
Or more accurately, Orochimaru’s plans.
Because who is he kidding, of course it is Orochimaru who makes the decisions here, who is the actual cause for the pain that is surging through Kabuto right now.
Defiling the bastard’s bedroom door suddenly feels right and actually takes the edge of the most acute agony he is feeling.
Normally he wouldn’t dream of doing what he has just done, but tonight is different.
He won’t even bother to clean up the mess, he decides to leave the scene just as it is and forget about the devil on the other side of the door.
He knows this feeling of glee won’t last, he has to enjoy it now or forfeit it all together, tomorrow things will be back to normal.
Well, perhaps not exactly like normal.
He smirks as he pictures Orochimaru emerging from his room to notice the mess and smell of dried semen painting the door to his most private quarters.
His eyes are bound to widen in shock.
If asked about it, Kabuto is going to put the blame on Sasuke.
He is the adolescent here after all.
It will surely make for an awkward training session no doubt and maybe Orochimaru will finally see the stupid boy for who he actually is, a simple teenager with an enormous chip on his shoulder.
Between Sasuke’s juvenile antics and Guren’s disappearing act, Orochimaru will most likely turn to the only sane person around and Kabuto will swallow his bitterness and embrace the attention with open arms.
As his head hits the pillow and his eyes closes for the night, his anger having been replaced by a more soothing sense of content, his lips are still formed into a lingering smile.
Tomorrow might actually turn out to be a good day after all.