Bound to You (Naruto)

Chapter Seven

Tsuki was confined to Orochimaru's quarters during the daytime while Kabuto was back, partially for her safety, but more for Orochimaru's peace of mind as he was growing tired of saving her. She was perfectly capable of defending herself, especially against Kabuto. The boy was skilled, but Tsuki had raw natural talent, especially with nature types. Wind was her strongest, but she could also flawlessly wield water and lightning. She was far too soft and saw Kabuto as her senior, and someone to be obeyed.

True to his word, once Kabuto had retired for the evening, Orochimaru returned to his private quarters to collect the girl. He found her waiting at the door wearing a simple white dress with a flowing skirt that floated around her legs as she spun. Her colorless eyes which usually revealed no sort of expression somehow looked bright and hopeful, the pale silver irises just barely shining through the whiteness of her eyes.

He inclined a brow at her bemused by her behavior, "What are you doing?" He asked her feigning ignorance and held back a chuckle as her smile fell thinking he'd forgotten.

"Ah, n-nothing." Her voice was deflated and she shrank back.

"Oh, I thought you wanted to see the moon-."

She flit to his side latching onto his arm with a bright smile that made his heart flutter unsteadily in his chest, "Yes, please!"

Disentangling himself from her, a little more roughly than he intended, he shot her a look of warning, "Let's go."

Tsuki bowed her head and followed after him quietly. Her gaze fell on the black crescent moon seared into her palm as she trailed after him in silence. The stories her grandmother used to tell her, romanticizing what it was to be bound to someone echoed through her mind, but clearly her grandmother was mistaken. Maybe something was wrong with Tsuki, maybe her bloodline abilities were weak and instead of being bound to her soulmate it bound her to whatever the opposite was. She wasn't sure the cold-hearted man was capable of such feelings as love. He believed only in science, facts, research. Love wasn't tangible and therefore wasn't real.

"Where do you want to go?" His cool voice shook her from her self-pitying thoughts and she was startled to find they were standing outside the lair's entrance. The moon was bright and full and looked bigger than ever in the sky overhead, it was mesmerizing.

"Can we go to the waterfall?" Tsuki asked meekly.

He nodded and led the way.

Tsuki smiled as she trailed along behind him loving the feeling of the cool spring dew on her bare feet. The air was crisp and cool and when she exhaled she could see her breath in the air, but she didn't care if it was cold. She felt rejuvenated under the moon's healing glow.

They made it to a small clearing in the thick forest with a small crystal pool that dwindled into a small stream flowing to the east, one side of the pool was nothing but sheer rock from the mountain partially surrounding them. Water spilled over the edge into the crystal-clear pool from the mountain above, the other half of the pool was surrounded by the dense forest where the underground lair resided. Tsuki leapt onto the water's surface with a quiet giggle. The cool water sent delightful shiver's down her spine as she danced across the surface. Casting her arms out as she danced, lightly humming an eerie tune, the water reacted as she unconsciously activated her water style. It splashed up around her in beautiful cascading arcs glowing in the moonlight as she danced.

Tsuki felt the hair on the back of her neck stand on end and halted her fluid movements as she turned to the shore. Orochimaru was watching her intently, looking annoyed. He averted his gaze as she cast a glance in his direction before finding a spot to sit beneath a tree near the shore where he could keep an eye on her as he skimmed through yet another book about her clan.

A strong gust of wind swept through the clearing with a shriek and Tsuki looked up desolately as the sky began to fill with large thunderclouds. She concentrated on her chakra, shifting the wind currents around her and waved her hand dramatically as she envisioned the clouds shifting and moving, heading back to the west. The wind she created was much stronger than the earlier gust and nearly uprooted trees in the process as she pushed back the storm. She didn't get to go outside very often, and she wanted to enjoy the moon as much as possible.

Her hair stood on end once more and she turned to find his piercing gaze focused on her once again. She met his terrifying gaze and felt her heart skip a beat as he ensnared her in a single look. He tore his gaze away from her looking irritated, she could sense an uncertainty within him. Something was bothering him, but she knew better than to question him.

Once she'd exhausted herself dancing beneath the moonlight, she retreated to the shore and flopped into the cool dewy grass with a sigh of contentment. After awhile she felt something tickling her feet and peered down only to let out a hushed giggle as she spotted two cute floppy eared rabbits sniffing at her toes tickling her with their whiskers.

She rolled onto her belly only to gasp as she found a fawn laying in the grass near her head. It didn't seem the least bit bothered by her moving around and laid down its head preparing for a snooze. Tsuki smiled to herself as the bunnies got brave and began climbing on her legs. She held out her hand and laughed as they nuzzled her fingertips.

Orochimaru chanced a glance in her direction taking a break from his research only to stare in awe as he found the starlight girl surrounded by woodland creatures. If she didn't hate violence so much, she'd be quite the hunter. She was so sweet and charming that other creatures let their guard down and flocked to her. He had a suspicion it would even work on people as she was a rare beauty, and her soft sweet nature was so inviting. People would instantly be lulled into a false sense of security, all she had to do was smile.

He felt something stir within him as he watched her laughing in the dew-covered grass as she played with rabbits, squirrels and chipmunks. Her pale eyes flicked in his direction and her smile fell, she dropped her gaze as a faint rosy blush spread across her pallid cheeks. He didn't normally watch her this much and it made her feel nervous. The sky was slowly starting to brighten as the sun began to rise filling the once black sky with pastel purples, pinks, and blues.

"Tsuki, let's go." Orochimaru called to the girl as he rose to his feet. She was sensitive to light and the sun would be up soon.

Tsuki said farewell to her woodland friends and hurried to his side. She cringed as the sun began its ascent into the sky. He'd never let her stay out this long before. It had been years since she'd seen the sun. Her skin began to itch as the forest began to brighten.

They headed for the underground fortress at a leisurely pace. Orochimaru chanced a glance in the starlight girl's direction as the sky brightened. She was squinting due to the brightness and her pale skin was already starting to turn pink.

He swept her into his arms and ran back to the lair. Once they were safely indoors, he released her from his hold. Her skin had returned to normal and she bowed her head.

"Thank you, Orochimaru-sama."

Orochimaru pat her on the head lightly and resisted the urge to smile as she let out an adorable squeak and looked up at him with wide eyes. "Time for bed." He said tonelessly and stepped away from her leading the way to his private sleeping quarters.

Tsuki ran to keep up with his long quick strides wondering why he took off so suddenly. She blindly raced after him struggling to keep up and in her haste missed her step, triggering one of the many traps. She fell through the floor with a shriek, only to fall short with a gasp as a strong hand encircled her wrist.

"Tsuki." Orochimaru glared down at her in annoyance, "Don't be a nuisance."

"S-sorry." Tsuki flushed as he pulled her into his arms, deciding he'd get to his destination much faster if he just carried the troublesome teen.

Video- "Heaven" By PVRIS