one_long_mission | [Open] How curious.

Grumble, grumble, grumble... "How do I find work in this place if no one even looks at me twice?"

This was not entirely true. She had gotten some tryouts, but really, how exciting was it to sell vegetables, or man a cash registrer, or make sandwiches?
She was unable to imagine anything she would -like- to do so far. She had to find a job, else this motherly clanmember would have her head, or worse, her photo of Sasuke!

She was torn from her thoughts as a familiar chakra signature came onto her awareness. It was not the aferementionned person, but...
She rushed towards it, focussing upon it. It was familiar, yet different. She had known this chakra for years. Its core was the same, and yet... now could it feel devoid of much of that coldness she knew lied within?

She had even cut through rooftops in order to move faster, and with a flurry of dark beige cloak, she suddenly landed before him a few meters ahead of his path, head bowed. "Orochimaru-sama!"

He paused, blinking as he stared down at her for a long moment. "...Hello there. I do believe it's the first time anyone has greeted me like that since I got here."

The voice was different, and when she looked up, so were the features. She partly awaited something like this, since she had met ... well, the female Sasukes. Nothing she knew should be taken for granted.

"I suppose I should explain." she straightened, cloak swishing lightly. "As you most likely know, this village contains many people, and sometimes the same from different paths. I am Karin." she gave a pause, but not too long.

"Where I am from, youtook me from the completely razed Kusagakure into your care and made use of my skills and powers to aid your research, and later serve as guard in the southern hideout. As far as my powers, I serve as chakra sensor and.." there she rose an arm and pulled down a sleeve to show a bite mark. "...I can also replenish people's chakra." Because really, she was not going to hide or keep silent on things he would find out anyway, because he -had- found them in her timeline, and she knew he was undoubtedly capable of achieving such here.

"So then... should you have need of me, I am back Orochimaru-sama.." she kneeled again.

He stared at her a moment more,then took two steps forward and touched her hair. "Karin-chan mm? Up off the ground, that can't possibly be good for your clothes."

She rose because he told her to, and was vaguely puzzled. He showed concern for her clothes? "I have a cloak especially for that reason."

His voice was definitely not the same, and his appearance suggested it was the younger self of--- She had to pause and marvel for a moment. Was he always this nice? The way he touched her hair too, and attached that -chan suffix. She studied his chakra again, curious. It seemed decoid of all that coldness she had felt in the world she sharedw ith the older version...

"A waste of money to replace and a waste of time to clean when not required." It was a crisp dismissal of her concern, and he trailed a fingertip to under her chin to look at her more closely. "With simply the abilities you told me, making you a mere guard seems a waste."

What was this? He had always acted as he wished, touching anyone in whatever way he may please, but those words? They meant something else entirely, and even deconstructed what his future self had done, at least the assignment to guard part. She did bear with teh touch unflinchingly, and showed no reaction. "Waste was always something you greatly disliked." she noted, but didn't think it applied to clothes.

That chakra of his... it definitely felt warmer than what she had known. How interesting.

"I must have decided that whatever I set you to guard was worth a great deal if I sent off someone with so much potential to handle things there." He cocked his head to the side, curling his fingers to gently hold her chin as he continued to examine her. "What are your other talents, intellectually speaking."

"Things such as deception aren,t below me if it fits an end." one may wonder where she picked that from. "Techniques are easy to deduct since I can read chakra, too."

"Ah ah. That isn't what I meant Karin-chan. What do you like to study?" He finally released her chin, gaze steady on her.

"Sasuke, of course~" she pulled out the picture she always had with her. "Isn't he the most perfect and gorgeous and someday HE WILL BE MINE!!"

She gave a pause, because his expression most likely shifted drastically after that display.
"..oh.. Oh yes, this was most certainly notw hat you meant." she coughed into her hand.

"...So that is why you ended up being sent off as a guard then mm?"

"I have no idea what you are talking about!! Besides, you were the one who was with him the most, and once I got stationned to that hideout, I hardly saw him." Careful, Orochimaru, you're looking like a rival even if you did nothing at all...

He moved his hand and flicked her in the nose. "And if you did that constantly around the boy it would have been horribly annoying."

"!" nothing could express her shock at that gesture.

"I did NOT!" she protested. "Hmph. Besides, I got him all to myself...eventually." Yeah, eventually. "Except there was that damn Suigetsu always there! Aaaaaalways!"

"Karin-chan, is there a particular reason you think i would be interested in your sexual conquests?"

"I-- ah-- because--" oh right. Right, he wan't! She pushed her glasses back up her nose with a huff. "...what were we discussing?"

He laughed and leaned down, almost touching noses with her. "I do wonder. Tell me more about you Karin."

Red eyes stared. She was used to people getting up close and personal, but they all ever just needed to bite her. No one had been like this towards her! Normally it was her being like this with Ssauke.

Not only that, Orochimaru-sama had laughed, and she did not feel like something terrible was going to occur...
...yet.

"I-I-I feel like you know everything about me already and yet you don't! I blame this village for pulling us out of where we were." she shook a fist at nothing, or air in general. "But yes, well, I suppose I should start at the beginning... although my story isn't all that long."

He hummed, holding her gaze and reaching up to move her fist so she didn't accidentally smack him. "That would be quite appreciated. Considering some of the mistakes I heard I made, I'm looking at this entire venture as an educational experience, though I have no desire to accidentally deprive myself of meeting such a versatile young lady, so proceed."

She took a deep breath for a variety of reasons.

That is Orochimaru-sama... So she should just answer him dutifuly.

"Well then..." he seemed to never be interested before, but he did state he seeked educational experience. "My family were shinobi, although I never found out much about them. Apparently they fled and left me when I was 5, go figure." she shrugged. "I did manage to get to genin, and our team went for the chuunin exam in Konoha"

She gavea sigh. "That ended in a disaster, and I decided to focus on something other than combat, but training with most of anything was dropped when the village got downed to the ground. I only ran away with my own life because I saw them coming." and really, why would she have bothered warning anyone? Not that she sounded like she had much ties.
"This was when I met you. Or rather, you came and saved me. You took me to one of your numerous hideouts, and..." she looked away. "You found out everything about my abilities and used me to sustain other experiments when possible, or even your own self." Was there more? There was, but it was the gist of it.

He cocked his head and hummed lowly, finally giving her room as he straightened. "Do you actually enjoy being a shinobi Karin-chan?"

"...enjoy? It's what I did my whole life. I'm TRYING to get a job here and it's not working at all! That says I probbaly -should- remain a shinobi, even if I am vastly a non-combatant." she was more of the brains of a unit, it seemed, along with chakra sensor and chakra replenisher. "Why do you ask?"

"Because if you enjoy it, I would be willing to better improve your skills. I understand that the village is in process of establishing a mission system."

It was odd... but also oddly pleasant to hear. Better improve her skills, with him? It was hard to believe he would grow into the man she had met, with the wish to take over body after body...

She claimed a breath. "It would be mostly familiar to be with you if I am allowed to, Orochimaru-sama." she bowed again. On her own, she realized... she would be no good.

His lips quirked and he inclined his head. "Then I'll show you where I live that you can find me, mm? Come."

Then he turned to head off toward the southwest part of the cliffs around the village.

She followed readily. "Oh, I have recently met a cousin of mine who... instructed I find work. I suppose I can tell her undertaking missions will count for that much?" beacuse really, she tried and work jsut... wasn't much for her so far.
...not to mention that under Orochimaru-sama's guidance, she could become even more of an asset...

"Which cousin was this?" He looked sideways at her, studying her for resemblances. There were a few, but they could go any direction.

"Uzumaki Kushina. Apparently she was told to 'take care of me' since I was a relative. It worked very well since then." she rolled her eyes. "Something about being unproductive, i suppose... not that anyone had given -me- any orders."

He hummed and inclined his head slightly. "So you're an Uzumaki. I can see that readily enough." He looked contemplative for a beat. "Makes me wonder about Jiraiya's newest brat now though."

"Oh, Naruto? I first heard about him through a female sasuke, of all things... apparently she is together with one of... them? I think there are many of these, both Narutos and sasukes." how weird it was to say someone's name in plural.
...and apparently she can say sasuke's name without going into fangirlistic trance because she was referencing one, and then those two female versions she had met so far.

"What? No. Some boy from Rain." He waved a hand. "He had the same hair color as you."

Oh right. Different timelines.
..but wait, red hair?

"...hm... Rain.." she blinked, then shook her head. "I can't recall much about it, save for hearing about Akatsuki's founder coming from there." she shrugged.

"Maybe they're one and the same, I haven't heard about it myself so it likely doesn't exist yet."

"The passing of time does do... strange thinfs.." she couldn't help but soften when she looked at him. He was different than she was used to, and all in good ways...

"I've come to find that to be true, but often they're easy to understand if one learns the motivations."

"Hmm... motivations. Yes." That must be it. He is driven by something now, but it shifted to make him into the one she had met. "No matters what yours were, or are, I would trust you." because he was the one to whom she owed everything.

He looked sideways at her and came to a halt at the foot of the cliff. "If you need me, come here. If I'm home I'll come out if you try to get my attention."

She peered at the cliff and a knowing smile tugged at her lips. He -was- good at hiding his location, as he always had been. "I'm sure if you ahve need of me, you'll finda way to contact me as well." she glanced around. "No one would suspect sucha scenery either."

"I'm still sorting out the seals used for concealment so that I can see if there are more. Tell me if you find other cave networks in this mountain?"

"Some exploration sounds good." she nodded. "Trying to go for multiple hideouts here too?"

"More preferring not to be caught unaware." He turned to head inside. "It was nice meeting you Karin-chan."

"I will be seeing you soon then, Orochimaru-sama." she saluted and was on her way as well, thinking exploring the surrounding cliffs the next few days may not be a bad plan.

[Open] How curious.

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