Archive of Our Own

Kasumi coiled around him as he finished up in the laboratory. It's the only place on the snake summons lands that she feels safe to venture. With her colouring and small size, he doesn't blame her for staying on the human land.

"If you had the chance to grow again without any danger, would you choose to stay as you are or grow larger?"

Ka-san is quite as she thinks, and he closes his book, slipping it away into the correct drawer. The numbers are looking better than expected, given that it has only been three years. The numbers are starting to stabilise in the territories to the point where he will need about half the number of breeding pens in another five years. Those pens will be before the larger snakes that require above-average feeding amounts. 

"I would perhaps like to be a little bigger, but I enjoy my time with you and would not give that up to be the size I could have been."

He bends till his head rests on hers. 

"I'm pleased to of had you growing up, Ka-san."

The hiss he gets has him relaxing, slipping down to the floor, and joining into a pile of limbs and coils. It would be better with Madoka here, but this is nice. 

"You still have a few more years of growing up, snakelet. But once you are grown, we will still be kin."

"Always." He paused and then let out a breath. He's never once not just said what was on his mind, why is he hesitating now. "But if you wanted snakelets of your own bloodline, they would be welcome on clan land and we could bring them food from here till they move on to their own territory."

Kasumi squeezes him a little tighter, and it's the end of that. 

He walks through the mist, still not sure about this. Jiraiya had told him of his frog sage training and how long it was taking. He's read that the serpents have a similar sage style, but there is little to go on. He thought of putting it off, but the battles are getting harder; it's clear that war is coming as tension grows with each passing year. He is aware that when war falls on Konohagakure, his team will be called to the front line. They may be young, but they are also a strong well-rounded team.

He breathes in, tasting the air, and its still the same scents, moist air, damp dirt, and the same few snakes. It's easy to follow their trail even if he can't see their slide marks. Their all clearly leading to one location and if he's reading it right it is not to far away.

Light is his next clue, and then he stares up at the doors. Someone has gone to a lot of effort to make this eye-catching. There are lanterns, multiple hangings, and a decorative sign. It's all way too over the top and something he would expect from rich, idiotic humans. 

The doors open, brighter lights showing the silhouette of a human. 

"Welcome to Ryuchi cave."

Taking a breath, he steps forward and forces down a smile.

"I'm Orochimaru. Are you able to guide me to the white snake sage?"

"I'm Tagorihime. Why don't you come in and rest while I make arrangements?"

"That's a very human thing. I hadn't thought that she would work more to human standards than serpents."

"The White Snake Sage's time is valuable."

He nods and steps in. There is a feasting table to one side and a resting area to the other. It's confusing in the way it's too human. Why would a serpent have human food on a table when she's more likely to have other serpents visit her? 

"Don't worry about anything for me. I ate and slept before making this trip. If you can find out a time when the sage will see me, I'll come back then."

She frowned, "Are you sure you don't want anything?"

"Not from you."

The lanterns go out, fog drifts in, and she laughs. That laughter turns into a hiss as the smell of rot fills the room. That had been quite some genjutsu to fool even his senses. 

"That's a pity, I was looking forward to eating prey with such rich chakra. The Great White Snake Sage only lets us eat those who fail the tests."

So there was going to be more than one test; that was good to know. 

"I'll make sure to send food your way as an appreciation for the information," he tells her.

A hiss is all he's met with as their scent changes slightly and moves away. It would have been nice to be pointed in the right direction, though snakes aren't known for their hospitality. He'd packed accordingly with two weeks' worth of food and scrolls to pass any downtime. 

It's a shorter time than he expected as the cave brightens up ahead. He'd expected to walk for hours instead of the twenty-four minutes. It's a blue glow of lanterns, and as the light grows, so does a new scent stand out against the others. This must be the snake who hopes you fail the second test. Interesting that it is similar to Tagorihime, perhaps a sibling or a twin. 

There's a brief glimpse of someone as they dart through an entrance, so he follows. It's unsurprising when it's the same scent he's been picking up. The cave it leads to is slightly dimmer, and something on the ground reflects the light. 

Rock shifts, and he turns to watch the entrance close. He supposes that the first test room technically closed you in, too. This one is just in a more permanent way. 

He eyes the door, picking out the shapes carved out of the door. They're interesting. None of the matches match any others, and there's no pattern to them. This would likely have Jiraiya stumped for hours.

Turning once more, he looked at the objects littering the floor and picked out one. Turning back to the door he fits it neatly into one of the empty spots. 

"Look at you, so clever."

He doesn't turn, just keeps examining the wall. 

"It was simple."

It is simple, so there must be a catch. Is this to check how determined you are? Your drive to move forward so you can learn.

"It is, if you fill in all the space completely. I'll let you out of here."

His lip curls up, and he works to keep his happy hiss in. 

"So all I have to do is fill the spaces in?"

"Yes. You can attempt to fill them in as many times as you like. You can keep going until you can't go on any longer. Till your body is too exhausted to stand, and then I get to consume you."

Her voice changes at the end, more of a hiss than words. Will it be more of a hiss if she gets mad? 

He turns and sees her wide grin, showing fangs. Like always, he wishes he could show his so easily. His words will have to be enough this time.

"That was helpful."

Lifting his hands, he summons two shadow clones and they start walking through the cave picking out the right shapes, he goes around and finds any large parts of gem... rock.  He's never studied something that wasn't a building material, so he's not quite sure. 

They gather at the wall five minutes later, and two puffs of smoke go as their memories of what they collected come to them. He makes quick work and is pleased with the result. There are only three left and their all basic shapes. 

Calling wind chakra up, he chips away at one of the large chunks he's collected. The shape takes form, and he fits it in before working on the next one. 

"Well, this is boring. I'd hoped you'd of taken at least a little longer to figure it out."

He doesn't bother replying as he focuses on finishing this test. Will there be another test? If so, how many more tests will there be? Will they all be as easy as the first two? So much he doesn't know, and the entire process is keeping him entertained in a way training hasn't been of late. It's getting harder to find new things to read in Konoha, perhaps he shouldn't have used shadow clones to help him get through the libraries. 

The door slides up after he fits the last gem. 

"This was almost a waste of time, but then again, I have nothing better to do."

He turns and sees her in her snake form, she's a patchwork of greens, yellows, and whites. She is three times as long as he is tall and as thin as his waist. 

"A duty is a duty."

"I look forward to seeing if you defeat my sister."

He inclines his head in parting. A hiss leaves him as he bends to the side, feeling fangs drag across where his shoulder meets his neck. It burns, and he moves, striking out with his sword, even as fangs ache to strike out. He's missed by an inch as he examines the woman who's a snake. She looks like her sisters, and he wants nothing more than to sink his fangs into her flesh.

"Not a full dose, I wonder how this is going to affect you."

There's a whisper that he knows isn't there. There's no way that fool would step foot into a snake's lair, let alone this one. He can't make out the words, but the voice tone is right. 

"Genjutsu inducing venom. I hadn't thought of it. Once I'm out of her I will have to think on it."

"Why is it always about the research?"

It's Tsunade's voice this time, and he scoffs. It's not like she can say that when she spends almost as much time studying as he does.

He looks at the snake, yet to introduce herself. 

"If this is to test my resolve, hurry up and finish it. The voices are a poor imitation of their counterparts. I will learn sage mode so I can stay alive."

The fog starts to clear as the burn dies down. 

"To pass my test so easily, perhaps it was due to the small dosage, but it's a pass. You may continue to the great white snake sage."

She gestures to the opening, and he walks on while keeping his senses open. 

The chamber was large, and it was needed given that the White Snake Sage could only partly rested on her chair. The snake had to be as long as Manda but not as wide. 

"So this is the boy who passed all the tests with ease. I see why now. Snake but not snake. Kin but not kin."

She flicked her tongue in a puzzled way before smiling. He stopped walking, keeping back enough that he would have some reaction time if the sage struck out. 

"Your mother must have followed the first summoner's training. So interesting that it showed up so differently."

What had his mother done, and was it the reason he was so different? He many get more then just training from this Serpent if he handled this right.

"I haven't been able to find scrolls on the first summoner. Do you know of them?"

The snake laughed, and it seemed to vibrate the air.

"I'm the oldest snake alive right now. The first summoner came to me for advice. But that's a story for another time, first you must pass the sage test."

There was a glint in the sage's eyes that spoke of glee. What was this challenge that made the snake so pleased? Jiraiya had said he was learning meditation and keeping still. That it was both boring and nessasery.

"I have come for that. I have used up a day of my two weeks getting here. If any more time is required, I will need to go tell my team that I require more time."

The snake's coils started to move, and the sound of scales on stone sounded around the room. "I do not think more time will be required, given that you are kin but not kin."

Kin but not kin. Hadn't he felt that way with Kasumi most of his life? That he had more in common than just Kasumi raising him. He felt more comfortable with the snakes than most humans and understood there motives better. Even with his human shape he fit in better in in the snake lands. 

"The first part of it is simple. I will pierce your flesh with my fang and inject natural energy into you. If you turn into a snake, I will eat you; if not, I will train you."

"Will I be mentally unstable if I turn into a serpent?"

The snake blinked, slithering down from its chair. It lowered its head and then turned to watch him with one eye that was a match for Kasumi's. 

"Kasumi looks like you. I heard from Manda that she was your only white scaled daughter, but even your eyes are alike."

The serpent let out a hiss, nothing aggressive, more curiosity. He resists turning as the snake circled him with its tail. 

"I imagine they are much like yours. But enough of that, are you ready to start?"

"Where is the best place for the injection?"

Had this been done enough that there was a best place. Would it change the process to be bitten in the arm versus the leg?

"The closer to your heart, the quicker the process, but the less time your body has to adapt, but that also means it will take more time to be able to work with large amounts of natural chakra."

Loosening his sash, he slipped the sleeves down and let his arms slide free before pulling his chain male over his head and sealing it away in his storage seal. 

"Let's proceed with closer then."

As much as he wished to study the process, drawing out his suffering wasn't an appealing thought. 

Pain in his chest had him flinching back as white scales filled his vision. He hadn't even seen the sage move, how had he not seen a sign? He blinks, looking around and noting that everything is slightly off. 

"Genjutsu."

The sage hissed out a laugh.

"Worry about that later, for now, be my entertainment."

His feet gave out as his flesh burned, and his chakra system felt like acid was flowing through it. He took a breath and shoved his mind away from his body. He needed to balance his body, to accept the pain and make it his. 

He breathed in, and pain followed, burning his lungs. Oh shit, it was in the air, it was all around him. Of course it was, it was a natural chakra. He breathed in again and felt his chakra react to the foreign chakra. No, that wasn't quite right, it didn't feel foreign, just too much. 

Gathering it, he breathed it out and felt a little better, even as he felt more of the world around him. Again, he breathed, trying to find balance, trying to find an equilibrium in his body. 

Time flowed as he kept breathing, kept finding new things around him as he adjusted to his new sense. There were a few snakes just one room over, none of them as big as the sage, but still on the large size. Then there was the sage, with this new way of seeing chakra, he could truly see how large she was, and that was almost twice Manda in length.

The knowledge that the sage must know, he would have to find a way to learn it all from them. 

"Open your eyes, little snake who's not a snake, because now the fun truly begins."