Pupil of the Serpent

A/N: No real changes to this chapter, either. Not surprising, considering I wrote it quite recently. It takes time for me to realize how much my writing sucks. One more chapter to edit, and then we get to the new stuff!

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To my reviewers:

@NinjaSheik: Wow . . . you're really awesome, you know that? I really want to thank you for your support and enthusiasm about the story, however unworthy I may be. Let me start by apologizing for how long it's taken me to update—life has been . . . hectic. I have indeed been keeping up with the manga/anime where I can, although I'm way behind at the moment . . . . I think it is super cool that you have a fan club for this pairing, and I can't wait to actually check out some of the stories you have there. As for this story being posted there . . . . Well, I am honored and extremely touched, although I'm not at all certain that my writing is deserving of such a gesture. I don't know if you still check (or even care about) this story, but if you do, you can expect much more frequent updates in the future, so hopefully we'll be seeing a lot of each other!

@Skyrere: Thanks for reviewing! Anko cookies are indeed delicious . . . and Orochimaru is pretty cool, too.   ;-)  I wish I could tell you how to get alerts and such, but I honestly don't know myself! Hopefully this story will be updated often enough from now on that you'll be able to see it.  

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Anko kept her head carefully lowered as she navigated the narrow, crowded streets, her dark hair shadowing her eyes. Though her mentor had told her to transform, she kept to her real appearance. Transformation drained one's chakra, and while her control was improving, she didn't trust her ability to keep herself hidden from sensory-type ninja. Besides, she knew that she could easily blend in by using the habits she had developed during her early childhood—ninja villages always had a lot of orphaned children, and they were as ubiquitous as stray cats. As long as she kept quiet, stuck to the background, and avoided calling attention to herself, there was little chance she would be noticed.

To her chagrin, however, she found that it was no longer as easy to evoke the silent little ghost as it had been even half a year ago, when she had first been chosen by Orochimaru. Too many times, she had to stop herself from responding when she was offered a friendly smile, or retaliating good-naturedly when jostled by a larger child. With faint alarm, she realized that becoming invisible was no longer effortless. Thinking back, she remembered the children who had been her classmates in the Academy; remembered her contempt for their excitability, their lack of care, and yes, their happiness.

I've become like them.

The realization shocked her; so much so that she stopped in the middle of the street for a moment, her body stiffening.



"Hey; watch where you're going, kid!"

She stumbled aside as a man pushed her out of the way, ducking her head and quickly resuming her street urchin disguise. She continued down the street, though her attention was now turned inward. Thinking about it now, the change in her behavior was so dramatic that she was shocked that she hadn't recognized it sooner. The Anko that her teacher had taken under his wing had been a sullen, hard-faced child, interested in little more than survival and getting stronger. While her drive for improvement hadn't diminished, all the other aspects of her personality had been completely transformed. Her master often complained that she was so energetic that she drove him to distraction, and as for everyone else . . . well, while some of them expressed whispered concerns about the "strange" habits she seemed to be acquiring from Orochimaru's tutelage, almost all her old teachers and acquaintances agreed that the new Anko was much more cheerful than she had been before.

She pondered this while she found a likely-looking dango stall to patronize. Although she knew that her choice of location would have been highly suspect to her teacher (who often told her that she ate enough dango to make him destitute), the stand was rather strategically placed. She was close enough to the other shops and restaurants that she would be able to eavesdrop on any conversations that seemed interesting, but the way she was seated kept her back to the street, so that no one would be able to see her face. In any event, she was hungry, and Orochimaru-sensei wasn't right about everything.

She ordered her meal, though she was careful not to ask for her usual massive amount of food, not wanting to stand out in the restaurant owner's memory. As she carefully chewed the sweet-tasting treat, she wondered what she was supposed to be listening for. If Kumogakure was planning something, those plans were hardly likely to be common knowledge, even among the ninja of the village. Civilians wouldn't be likely to know anything at all. She wondered why Orochimaru-sensei had chosen such a strange plan—it seemed to her that it would be much more effective to attempt to impersonate high-level Cloud ninja and get the information they wanted directly. Even if it was risky, she was sure that her sensei could pull it off. Still, he had told her to follow his orders without question, and she didn't want to push her luck.

While waiting for something to happen, she thought back on what her master had said about what he referred to as the "Ultimate Being".

Mastering every jutsu that has ever been or will ever be created . . .

Was that really possible? After all, everyone died eventually. How could you learn a jutsu that might be created after your death? After considering this for a few moments, she shrugged. If Orochimaru-sensei said that it could be done, then it could be. And she would support him with all of her strength; help him to reach his goal so that they would always be together . . .

Her daydream was interrupted as she took notice of a conversation between a pair of passing Kumo-nin.

"Is it really true that Raikage-sama recovered one of the Treasured Tools? I thought they were completely lost with those brothers . . ."

"No; he didn't find any of the Tools . . . but he did bring back something else."

"Something else? What's that?"

"A sword. It's rumored to be the Sword of Kusanagi that was sealed away long ago—if that's true, it's sure to be incredibly powerful. Raikage-sama gave it to Bee; you know how he likes collecting swords."

"Well, anything that distracts him from that awful rapping is sure to be a good thing . . ."

A chuckle of agreement answered the ninja's words as the two men passed out of earshot. Anko shifted restlessly as she considered what she had heard. It wasn't the type of information she was supposed to be looking for, but . . . the more she thought about it, the more certain she became that her teacher would be interested in hearing about this Kusanagi Sword. After all, had he not told her that he needed to acquire as much power as possible? If the sword was as powerful as the ninja had made it sound, it would be an excellent start on that path. And once he had a sword, she could find out more about the mysterious sword-and-sheath ritual . . .  Maybe he would even decide that she was a worthy partner to perform the ritual with! The thought sent a shiver of anticipation through her.

Fast on the heels of that thought came another idea—why should she limit herself to simply telling Orochimaru-sensei about the sword? She wanted to show him that she was strong and capable; what better way of doing that than stealing the sword on her own? Although she knew that he wouldn't approve of the unnecessary risk, he hadn't explicitly told her not to act on any information she discovered. She wouldn't be violating any orders . . .  Yes, she would do it!  

"Are you gonna order somethin' else, or are you gonna sit there starin' into space all day?" Anko glanced over at the grumbling store owner, who was glaring at her, meaty hands resting on his hips. "This ain't no charity home, kiddo. Buy somethin' or get lost."

With an inward sigh, Anko slipped off the stool she was sitting on. While the kunoichi certainly wasn't adverse to ordering another few dango skewers, the street urchin she was pretending to be would have already spent all her meager savings on what she had ordered before. Besides, the sun was starting to sink below the misty clouds that surrounded the hidden village; she would need to hurry if she wanted to recover the sword in time for her rendezvous with Orochimaru-sensei.

Just as she was starting to leave, however, she saw something that made her pause. A muscular young man, whose dark skin contrasted sharply with the shock of blond hair that stuck up from his head, was walking towards her—or swaying, as he seemed to be. He wore the same uniform as the other Kumogakure ninja she had seen, but he also had two swords strapped across his back, and another which was attached to a belt at his waist. Strangest of all, he wore a pair of sunglasses, even though the sun was already low in the sky. As he drew closer, she could hear him mumbling under his breath. Every so often, he would pull a book from his jacket and scribble something in it.

Feeling a bit unnerved, Anko moved to slip past him, trying to look as unobtrusive as possible. Before she could slip by, however, he stepped in front of her, blocking her path. Not having expected to be intercepted, Anko nearly collided with him before she was able to check her momentum. She blinked, staring up at him; he towered over her like a mountain.



"Yo!" The man's voice was deep and rhythmic, but the word seemed to trail off at the end, as if it were a sentence that he had started, but never completed.

Anko stared at him blankly, unsure of what to make of the man's greeting . . . if it was a greeting. Was he drunk? She ducked her head, attempting to step around him. In her experience, it was usually best just to ignore such people. Much to her surprise, the man moved to intercept her again.



"Yo!" he repeated, and it was clear that he expected an answer.

The girl bit her lip, feeling fear well up within her. Had she done something wrong? Did he suspect her? Try as she might, she couldn't imagine what would have given her away; she'd hardly spoken to anyone, and none of her behavior had been out of the ordinary.

Stay calm, she reminded herself. It could be nothing. This guy was probably just some weirdo. He certainly acted the part . . .

"Hi," she replied softly, careful not to let any emotion show on her face besides the normal nervousness that any child would feel after being confronted by such a bizarre-looking ninja.

"When ninja meet, they should give their name," the man boomed, making a few odd gestures as he spoke. "Staying silent is totally lame!" He paused for a moment, nodding to himself and scribbling in his book once more. "Yeah . . . that was an intense rhyme."

Anko stiffened, feeling panic surge through her body in a rush of adrenalin. If she were back in Konoha, she wouldn't have hesitated to boldly proclaim her name, as the student of the great Orochimaru . . . nor would she have held back in telling the man exactly what she thought of his "intense rhymes". In her current situation, however, the words set her on edge. How did he know that she was a ninja? She'd given no indication, as far as she could tell.

"My name's Anko," she answered, deciding that it was safe enough to give her real name—it wasn't as if she had the infamous reputation of her master, after all. "And I'm not a ninja."

"Even if you're shy, you shouldn't lie," he chided, causing her eyes to widen.

"I'm not lying!" she protested, quickly scanning her surroundings. No good . . . there were too many people around to risk making a scene by running away. She'd just have to try to bluff her way through this. "Anyway, you haven't given me your name," she countered, to buy time.

As soon as the words left her mouth, she knew she'd made a mistake. It was foolish to ask for his identity when she had no idea of his status in the village. For all she knew, he could be the Raikage. Sure enough, his next words served to confirm her worst fears.

"There's no way you haven't heard of me!" he proclaimed, giving her an incredulous look. "I'm the mighty rappin' Killer Bee!"

Ugh . . . just my luck that this goofball would actually be someone I'm supposed to know . . .

 She paused in mid-thought. Wait . . . she did know this guy—or at least, she knew of him. This was the person who had the sword she was looking for! She tried to decide whether it was a good thing that he'd found her, rather than the other way around. On one hand, she'd have preferred to have avoided a confrontation. On the other hand, however, he certainly didn't seem very strong . . . if she could just get him alone, she might have a chance to steal the sword, once she confirmed that it was one of the three on his person.

Anko paused for a moment, her amber eyes narrowing as she considered her target. She knew that Orochimaru-sensei would likely kill her if he could see what she was about to do, but he wasn't there. Besides, she'd always preferred the direct approach. She lifted her chin defiantly, looking directly into Bee's sunglass-covered eyes.

"Let's fight."

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A/N: I swear, Bee just kind of wrote himself into this chapter. I hadn't planned on using him, but . . . ah, well. If you have the time, leave a review? They really do make me happy . . .