Mend Me

Chapter 9

 

Orochimaru didn’t bother to knock as he silently slipped into the newly occupied room. As he entered and closed the door, his eyes went to the small, pale boy lightly sleeping on the bed. A chair sat on the other side of the room, giving the man a perfect view of Tetsuya’s face as he settled down into it.

 

He crossed his arms as he scanned the boy’s face. Everything about the boy came from him; not a trace of Saya could be seen in him. Not on the outside, that is.

 

Even in sleep, it was hard to stand against Orochimaru’s stare. Tetsuya began to shift in his sleep and slowly open his eyes just minutes later. All he could see a bright spot in the dark room as his eyes started to focus. They snapped open when a face started to form. Tetsuya instinctively threw the covers over his head in an attempt to hide.

 

Orochimaru chuckled lightly from his chair. “Come out from there.”

 

Tetsuya obliged, first peaking only his eyes out before seeing his father’s amused expression and crawled out the rest of the way. He moved closer to the edge of the bed and sat on his feet. “Mom’s not going to be happy you woke me up,” he casually muttered.

 

Orochimaru smirked, giving the boy the slightest glance of his fangs. Tetsuya’s eyes immediately snapped to them before his eyes widened even more.

 

“Woah, look at your teeth!” he exclaimed as he leaned even closer. “Mom never mentioned those.”

 

Not surprising, Orochimaru thought. The next thing he knew, Tetsuya was crawling off the bed and up to the arm of the chair he was sitting in. His small body sat perfectly on it and he was almost eye to eye with his father.

 

“You’re certainly not a timid one,” he told the boy.

 

“What do you mean?” Tetsuya asked as he cocked his head.

 

“You have no idea who I am, but you have no problem approaching me as if you do.” He smirked. “That’s not always a wise thing to do.”

 

Tetsuya’s face fell at the remark. “But…you’re my dad.”

 

Orochimaru looked down calmly at the boy. He could see sadness creeping into his golden eyes. His eagerness to trust anyone who gave him the slightest attention reminded the man of his own early childhood. His serpentine eyes and deathly pale skin left him unapproachable. He raised a hand and shakily ran it over the boy’s head.

 

“I know,” he told Tetsuya. He bit the inside of his mouth as he choked out his first bit of parental guidance. “You have to be more careful, though.”

 

“What about that other boy? Is that why he didn’t seem very nice?”

 

 “Sasuke is my student. He has a troubled past and likes to keep to himself.”

 

“You’re a teacher?” Tetsuya quickly asked. “I thought you were a famous ninja.”

 

Orochimaru opened his mouth to speak, but his mouth curled into a slight grin as he looked down at the bright eyes shining up at him.

 

“Both,” he replied. “I had a student when I was a young shinobi, but that was some time ago. Now I’m known for being one of the Legendary Sannin of the Leaf Village and Lord of the Sound Village.”

 

“You mean, like a king?”

 

The man couldn’t ignore such an egotistical comment, even if it was from a child. He crossed his arms with a smirk. “In a way, yes. Which makes you-”

 

“Like a prince!” Tetsuya finished for him. “I had no idea.”

 

Orochimaru chuckled lightly. “It’s true. And if something were to happen to me, by rights you would be the new lord. Did your mother not tell you that?”

 

Tetsuya sat up straight and shook his head. “She doesn’t talk about things like that. But what about her? Isn’t she your queen?”

 

Orochimaru dropped his smirk then. His eyes began to harden as he looked away from his son to stare at the wall ahead. There was no right way to answer that. “She would be my lady, but that’s her decision,” he replied softly.

 

“Why wouldn’t she want to?”

 

The smirk returned to Orochimaru’s face. “I’m not sure, but I bet you can find out for me. Could you do that, Tetsuya?”

 

“Of course, Dad,” the boy answered with a smile.

 

“Good.” Orochimaru sat back in the chair to get comfortable. “Now tell me, what has your mother told you about me if not that I’m a lord?”

 

Tetsuya took note of his father’s action and decided to get comfortable himself. He scooted off the arm of the chair and into Orochimaru’s lap. He beamed up at the man, even though he received a questioning look.

 

“Well, mostly stories about how she took care of you. She keeps telling me you’re really strong, but she won’t tell me any stories about your missions. Akira talks about his all the time. Oh, and she told me to be happy I don’t look…normal.”

 

Tetsuya shrugged at the word, hoping his father would understand. Orochimaru’s hands balled into fists as his arms remained crossed.

 

“Who told you you weren’t normal?”

 

“A lot of people,” Tetsuya replied as he face began to fall.

 

Orochimaru clenched his jaw, but quickly released it as he noticed the strange feeling surging inside of him. It felt similar to anger, but there was also something extremely defensive about it.

 

“You’re quite normal, Tetsuya. It’s looking exactly like everyone else is what isn’t normal.” Orochimaru cocked his head. “Is that what she meant?”

 

“Well, she told me I’m different, but that it’s a good thing. And that I’m lucky to look like you because you’re so handsome.” Tetsuya rolled his golden eyes and grinned warmly up at his father. “I like what you said better.”

 

Orochimaru’s smirk returned as the comment started to play with his thoughts. “Isn’t you mother quite flattering, then?”

 

“The most handsome man she’s ever met, she said.”

 

The man chuckled then. He knew his physical appearance was tempting to Saya, but not to that extent. It was no wonder he was so easily able to seduce her those years ago. Her telling him she hadn’t come back to pick up where they left off now seemed like a blatant lie.

 

“I’m quite glad you told me that.”