Bound to You (Naruto)

Chapter Nine

Tsuki was starting to feel relaxed again, once Orochimaru informed her Kabuto would be leaving soon for awhile to participate in the chunin exam in the Hidden Leaf Village. She didn't harbor any sort of resentment for the boy her age, but he was mean to her a lot over the years and lashed out at her often. She'd always tried her best to be polite and respectful to him, but that only seemed to make him hate her more. Because they were the same age, she'd always hoped they could be friends, but she didn't think that was ever going to happen, he hated her.

Orochimaru had left early in the morning and told her he wouldn't be returning for a few days. He left her sedatives to take if she couldn't sleep the first night. She hated sedatives, hated the vulnerable feeling they gave her. If she didn't take them, her fatigue would affect him too, and she couldn't put him at risk. He'd come back once before with a minor injury and she blamed herself, perhaps if she'd been able to sleep on her own he wouldn't have gotten injured.

While Orochimaru was away, she spent her time cleaning, exploring in the darkness and playing with Yuki, the pure white summoning snake he always left with her. After tidying up Orochimaru's private quarters, she took a quick shower and changed into a simple grey dress that she often wore when cleaning. She pulled her long pale hair out of her face and tied it back in a ponytail as Yuki coiled around her legs on the floor, before making his way up her body and resting on her delicate shoulders. Yuki was fairly heavy, but it didn't hinder her too much and they could cover more ground if she carried him.

"Yuki-san, please don't attack any bunnies today, you know it upsets me." Tsuki commented as they made their way to the kitchen. A family of rabbits had moved into the hideout and were claiming a storage closet as their home and Tsuki had been bringing them vegetables to eat. Yuki, not knowing any better tried to eat one of the babies.

The pure white snake nuzzled her neck affectionately as if to say he understood and wouldn't do anything to upset her. Tsuki nearly had a meltdown when the snake tried to attack the family of rabbits. It had been so bad, that Orochimaru had come back early thinking something had happened to her and then scolded her for getting so upset over something so trivial.

"If you get hungry..." Tsuki looked stumped for a moment, "I guess you probably wouldn't eat cooked meat, would you?"

Yuki shook his head.

"What about raw meat, I think there's beef..."

Yuki peered up at her with bright emerald eyes before nuzzling her neck as if to say he would accept it.

Tsuki bowed her head feeling guilty for making the snake change his diet for her peace of mind. "I'm sorry, Yuki-san."

She giggled as she felt his tongue lick her cheek.

"Do you forgive me?" She asked sincerely only to giggle again as he nuzzled her cheek. "Thank you, Yuki-san."

Once they arrived at the kitchen Yuki went to curl up in a corner leaving the starlight girl to her war on dust and dirt. Tsuki set to work, dusting all the hard to reach places with a towel tied to a broom handle, it had been awhile since she'd given the place a deep cleaning. After nearly an hour of dusting and cleaning she felt the hair on the back of her neck stand on end, as if someone were watching her. Yuki moved from the corner.

"You're dismissed." Orochimaru's voice sounded from behind her, dismissing the summoning snake. He wasn't supposed to be back yet and she didn't feel his presence nearby.