Wandering Heathens

Gone

"Of course it has to be in the Land of fucking SNOW!" Ryuu ranted to himself as he bent his head down against the gale. Ice crystals left tiny cuts that the wind froze the blood from. He pulled his stolen cloaks against him; even with using his chakra to keep himself warm, the bitter cold was such that it didn't make much difference.

"Over here!" Ryuu's head whipped around in the direction the voice had come from. He couldn't be sure he had even heard a voice, the wind lashing against him was too loud. He stumbled a few paces and fell to his knees, the ice underneath his feet making his progress difficult. "Over here!" He heard again and looked through the icicles on his eyelashes. He could make out a vague figure...or was it a pillar of snow? He bent his head down and let out a tired sigh. Should've brought Shinjo anyways. If I fucking die, in this fucking cold, I'm gonna haunt his ass!

A small hand touched his shoulder. Ryuu jerked back, somewhat slowly, and was about to stab a senbon through the person's wrist when he saw it was a woman. A kind faced woman with dark brown hair, the cold making her cheeks rosy. "You're the fire user? I'm here to take you to my Lady." "I'm not a religious person, I don't need to receive the blessings of your "Lady", snow person." He replied tiredly. A kind smile graced her lips before she tugged on his arm, willing him to stand up. When he did, she tied a rope to his waist and hers, connecting them, and began to lead the way in the storm. It was all he could do to simply follow her, the cold slowly sapping his strength.

"What do you mean he left?!" Shinjo yelled at Tobi, shaking the poor woman by her shoulders. "Ryuu-kun received a scroll! Tobi doesn't know what it said! He left the base shortly after!" she wailed against his rough treatment of her. Kakuza and Hida placed a hand on each of his shoulders and pulled him back. He reluctantly let go of Tobi, sure she knew more that what she was saying. "If something happens to him, I'm slowly murdering your ass" Shinjo told the masked woman, a dangerous edge to his tone. "Tobi is innocent!" She yelled as she ran from the room, Shinjo's eyes following her retreating figure.

Kakuza embraced him from behind, her cheek resting on his shoulder. "He'll be fine. You keep telling us how strong and smart he is. I'm sure he'll be back from his mission soon" she said comfortingly. "Yeah! And if he fucking dies, Jashin-same will resurrect him because she's fucking JASHIN!" Hida chimed in, trying to comfort him. Shinjo chuckled at Hida's proclamation and ruffled her hair before kissing Kakuza's head. "Come. We have work to do" he said as he turned away and headed to his room. Where the fuck did you go?! And why didn't you take me?!

His eyes fluttered awake, his hand blocking the light until he got used to it. Groaning, he sat up, the blankets on him piling around his waist. "You finally wake" Orochimari hissed from her ledge on the side of the cave. "Did I get taken prisoner? Is that what this is?" He asked her. Laughing, Orochimari reassured him that he wasn't a prisoner but was a guest.

The woman who lead him through the blizzard bent down next to him and placed a steaming mug of tea in his hand. She moved away but he grabbed her wrist before she got too far. "Thank you" he said and she smiled and blushed in return. Orochimari watched the exchange, jealousy beginning to grow within her at the sight of her plaything being touched by someone else.

Narrowing her eyes, she walked over to where Ryuu sat near the fire, her robes billowing around her, and knelt in front of him. He looked into her slitted eyes and waited for her to speak. Standing abruptly, Orochimari turned away from him and began speaking. "What do you remember?" She asked.

Looking confused and scratching the back of his head, Ryuu replied "snow, being cold, the woman-" "No!" Orochimari shouted, turning and kneeling close to Ryuu's face, "What do you remember?" Pausing to understand her question, he thought back to the hospital and the supposed genjutsu. "Darkness, chasing someone, a woman? Then a flash of light, my sensei and teammate...that's it." He finished lamely.

"Hmmmm it seems he was more knowledgable than I gave him credit for" Orochimari mused, her index finger on her chin. She walked back to her ledge and sat down, tucking her feet under her. The kunoichi sat next to her and Orochimari brushed her fingers through her brown hair. "You've been through quite a lot since that night and I'm surprised that the seal hasn't simply disintegrated from age. But Zuko knew what he was doing... If only I had been alive during his time! The power he had! It could've been mine! Sadly most of the Ryōshi's knowledge was lost when he died. You and your partner are all that is left of them and the power they had."

She stood to her feet and walked back over to Ryuu, kneeling down and tapping his forehead with two of her fingers. "Their power is in here. I can remove the seal but you need to be ready to face whatever the truth is. Are you ready?"

With a determined look, Ryuu stared into the snake woman's eyes, gritted his teeth, and nodded. Orochimari smirked, closed her eyes and focused her chakra at her finger tips. "Kaihō suru!" His eyes rolled back into his head, showing nothing but white, his body went limp and he fell onto the cave floor on his back. The kunoichi knelt beside him and checked his breathing and pulse. "Is he going to be alright?" She asked. "Physically, he will be fine. Mentally? It depends on how strong he is. He does have the Uzumaki triad and the Ryōshi training on his side so he just might pull through" Orochimari said quietly as she watched the prone man unravel everything that had been kept from him.