Her Destiny

Talk with the Snake

Orochimaru was waiting when they arrived via summon scroll.

"Ah, you found her Kabuto," he said, a slight smile on his face. To Sakura it looked creepy, but maybe that was just her.

"Why do you even want me here Orochimaru? You realize that I could quite easily go back to the village and tell Tsunade-sama about this?"

"But you won't," the snake sannin said, smirking.

Sakura looked at him incredulously.

"What?"

"I have an offer for you, Sakura-san."

Sakura just sat there staring at the man.

They were in an office, Orochimaru sitting behind a large black finished desk, various papers piled neatly on it. The office itself was large, probably larger than the Hokage office if she was being honest with herself. The walls were lined with bookshelves, filled with books on history, medical techniques, and everything else one might possibly need in the position as a Kage. A bank of floor to ceiling windows opened out to a large balcony, where a chair and table were set up. It offered a view of the village below and the lands beyond the stone walls. Hmm, there must be a fair amount of earth release shinobi around to create such a wall.

"What do you want?" Sakura asked, after having taken a look at the office. The only doors were the sliding doors to the balcony and the one that stood closed behind her.

"I want you to take over leadership of Otogakure," Orochimaru said, face grave.

Sakura actually laughed. "Are you insane?"

"Some people think so, but I am quite sane at the moment. This is a serious offer."

"Why?" she asked, utterly bewildered.

"You are a shinobi of the Hidden Leaf, therefore holding to their ideals. You are fiercely loyal, and on top of that you are a shinobi of high caliber. But it seems that you don't get that recognition in the village, am I correct?"

"I'm the Fifth Hokage's apprentice. I get plenty of recognition."

He simply smiled. "But is that recognition for the things that you have done, the power you wield, or is it recognition for being the Hokage's apprentice?"

Sakura frowned. "Does it matter?"

"I believe so, yes." Orochimaru said. "I think that you are a formidable shinobi Sakura-san. The fact that more people have not noticed this is more than a little alarming. You are extremely intelligent, you have mastered Tsunade's techniques, you held your own on a team with Naruto and Sasuke, even when they showed to be so powerful. I noticed you a while ago, Sakura, and I think that your potential is being wasted in that village."

"I don't come from a clan, Orochimaru. I had to work my ass off to get where I am. Others had natural talent. I didn't, besides my chakra control."

"That is why you are the best option. You have not had everything handed to you. You have had to actually work for what you have, yet still you get no recognition. Naruto still thinks that you need to be protected, and Sasuke. . . well we all know how Sasuke feels about anyone that isn't an Uchiha. He plans to kill me as soon as I have outlived my usefulness. I have no intention of actually letting that happen, but that does not mean that I want to lead this village. There is too much of a stigma attached to my name. We need someone that is well thought of, powerful, willing to work for this village, someone that is willing to make the sacrifices needed, but not someone without talent," Orochimaru said. "I have watched you for years now, watched as you mastered Hime's techniques, watched as you were overshadowed by your other teammates, watched as you grew so much stronger than they believe you are. No one has a clue that you are so close to obtaining your seal, do they?"

Sakura was stunned. "How do you know about that?"

"You assume that I don't have my own sources of information around you. I am Tsunade's teammate, but I am also Jiraiya's. He is not the only one with an extensive spy network," Orochimaru explained.

"So you want me to take over this village, but what would you be doing?"

"I want to continue my life as a shinobi. I can be useful that way. I am also interested in the medical field, though not experimentation. A lot of what I have done is because it was expected of me, Sakura-san. Yes, when I was in the village I led experiments, but it was under the order of the council, not of my own will. The fact of the matter is that Sarutobi-sensei did not know what the council has been doing for many years. They set me up to take the fall. The attack during the exams was to try to get at Danzo. Sensei asked me to kill him. He was dying of a terminal illness. He thought that his death may be enough to bring Tsunade back to the village, and he was right. I have always been working with Sensei, not against him."

Sakura stared at him, completely gob smacked. "You did all of that because of the council?"

"Yes, and you may want to ask Itachi about it too, if you ever come across the man. Danzo has much more sway than any normal member should. There is a secret organization that he heads, ROOT, that does things behind the scenes, no of it legal. Sensei ordered it disbanded, but Danzo just started going about getting recruits differently. Have you never wandered where all of those orphans disappeared to?"

Horror overtook Sakura. "Danzo wants to be the Hokage, doesn't he?"

Orochimaru nodded solemnly. "He attempted to assassinate sensei. And I assume he has plans to do the same with Tsunade."

"Dammit. I assume you want me inform her?" she asked.

"If you could, without raising the alarm of the council, I would do so. We may not be on good terms anymore, but she is still my teammate."

Orochimaru gently rubbed at his arm. Sakura looked on puzzled.

"Are you hurt?" she asked, walking forward to look at his arm. She snatched it before he could pull back and lifted the sleeve of his shirt.

Only to stop dead at what she saw.