Nurse Me

Sorry for the long delay! This is the last chapter and the sequel "Mend Me" will be up in just a bit. :)

Chapter 20

A pulsing ache shook Orochimaru slowly form his deep sleep. The man winced once he eyes were open and put a hand to his lower chest. His ribs felt like they had been broken all over again. Oddly enough, he still managed a smirk. An easing and relaxing feeling he hadn’t felt in some time had replaced the tension that usually ran through his body.

Orochimaru managed to sit up, dropping his smirk as he looked over to see his bed was empty. His brow lowered in frustration when he directed his gaze to his bedroom door. Saya would be so stubborn as to sneak out to her own bed.

With another wince the man swung his legs over the side of the bed and reached for his discarded pants that were still lying on the floor. After slipping them on, Orochimaru opened his door and started up the hall. When he reached Saya’s room he calmly opened the door.

Light from the hallway barely penetrated the room, but it showed him all he needed to see. Not only was Saya not in bed, but her few belongings were gone. Orochimaru slammed the door shut, finally letting his quickly rising frustration out.

It was still early morning, he could tell. Every hallway was dark and quiet, but that did not stop him from noisily throwing open doors as he proceeded to stalk over the rest of the underground cavern. When even the restricted areas were found to be empty, Orochimaru made his way to the main entrance and stepped outside.

The sky was still partially dark, but birds were already chirping and flying about. A very faint breeze blew at Orochimaru’s hair for the first time in days. He remained still for a moment before his eyes turned to the ground. Not one, but two pairs of footprints were lightly imprinted into the soil.

Orochimaru shot a quick scowl at the larger pair before his head shot up to follow the trail. His legs propelled him forward when he could no longer see the tracks. He walked for several minutes before the trail led him into the woods. Now frustrated at the limited light, Orochimaru picked his pace up to a jog.

Fallen twigs and rocks drove into his bare feet and low hanging branches scratched at his face. With his anger growing, the man ran that much faster, swinging at anything in his way.

It was only when Orochimaru reached the top of a hill overlooking the rest of the trail did he stop. His ragged breathing was loud in his ears as he looked down at the desolate landscape. All he could think as his eyes followed the rest of the trail was that Saya was gone.

His senses seemed to be gone until he realized where he was and how and why he had got there. She had run and he had actually run after her. Orochimaru ran a hand over his face as if to hide himself from the desperate thought. Slowly, he turned around and walked calmly back.

He straightened his back and squared his shoulders as he did so. He wouldn’t let himself get too discouraged. After all, he knew Saya was too strong willed to stay. He only wished she had stayed just a little while longer.

In the end it didn’t matter, though. Orochimaru smirked to himself. His trap, although spontaneous, was laid quickly enough. He just had to wait until it was sprung.