"Orochimaru-senpai, you didn't need to be so impatient to see me — not everyone appreciates being summoned that way," Uchiha Yuan said, damp and mildly exasperated as the saliva on his clothes quickly vanished.
"Heh heh, Yuan-kun, I simply couldn't wait to meet you," Orochimaru replied in his raspy, magnetic voice. He still faced the experimental apparatus, watching the readings with intense interest.
"Alright… what urgent matter brings you to me, senpai?" Yuan glanced around the lab and moved to stand behind Orochimaru.
All over the lab were huge glass vats holding various tissue samples, some large, some small. Yuan could sense notable life force in those preserved organs.
In front of Orochimaru one jar contained a fist-sized chunk of flesh suspended in pale green fluid.
"Hmm!" Yuan frowned. He felt a faint echo of his own presence from that mass of tissue.
"Heh — Yuan-kun, so you noticed." Orochimaru turned toward him; the intensity in his eyes was almost feral, as if he'd like to devour Yuan alive.
"Is that Yakushi Nono's sample from you?" Yuan said calmly. He wasn't angry that his biological data had shown up here; at the Hot Spring Country base Yakushi Nono had warned him his test report had been taken by people sent by Orochimaru, so he had expected this possibility.
"Yes. After I saw your medical report, I had Nono collect a vial of your blood," Orochimaru said. "Don't worry — I've taken care of the paperwork. I altered your medical data so it won't attract attention."
Yuan asked, "Senpai, what did you find in my blood that worries you so?"
"Vitality," Orochimaru answered, suddenly serious. "I found in your blood a life force far beyond the norm — almost comparable to the cells of the First Hokage."
He smiled, faint and approving. "With such power, it's no wonder you survived your fight with the Fourth Raikage."
Yuan stayed impassive, staring at the tissue in the jar. Orochimaru watched the same tissue and then, with quiet curiosity, asked: "What do you think about immortality?"
Yuan met his gaze. "Immortality — to live forever — might be the ultimate pursuit of life."
Orochimaru's expression grew interested. "These experiments are my pursuit of immortality."
Then, with a knowing tone: "Yuan-kun, you practice senjutsu, don't you?"
A little white snake crawled up and curled on Orochimaru's shoulder; its black, onyx eyes looked at Yuan with an oddly expressive intelligence. Yuan could feel the animal's warm familiarity.
"Yes," Yuan answered without hesitation. He believed in candor; honest exchange builds trust. Orochimaru didn't pry about where Yuan's senjutsu training came from either — everyone guarded certain secrets.
Orochimaru's smile grew. "Yuan-kun, I'd like to invite you to join my research."
Yuan's expression shifted as he considered it. Orochimaru waited patiently.
After a moment, Yuan smiled and said, "I'm interested in your work."
"Heh heh — excellent. I look forward to our cooperation," Orochimaru replied, then picked up a syringe, eyes narrowing playfully. "Yuan-kun — I will need your blood."
Yuan laughed first, then grew serious. "Orochimaru-senpai — only once."
"Agreed."
The next morning Yuan left his home and walked down a path into the wood behind the clan grounds. Mist clung low between the trees. He stepped into a clearing and set up a stance, throwing one straight punch after another in a steady rhythm.
Later in the morning, he stopped and a strong wind swept outward from him. A flash of gold lit his brow, and like a hawk he leapt nimbly into the air. He plucked several leaves and flung them like shuriken in one direction.
A movement answered — a shadow leapt from a tree and, with a flip, scattered every leaf he'd thrown. A soft sound as the leaves struck nearby trunks, leaving them pinned.
The shadow dropped in front of him.
"Yuan-kun — sharp reflexes. I thought I'd hidden better; you found me," Shisui said with a smile.
Yuan answered coolly, "When you came I noticed you. Shisui — why are you looking for me?"
Shisui kept smiling, but inwardly he was slightly surprised. He'd always been confident in his ability to move unseen on the battlefield; that Yuan spotted him so quickly only raised Shisui's estimate of Yuan's skill.
"Yuan," Shisui said, "I recommended you for the Anbu to the Third."
"What?!" Yuan's brows knitted. "Shisui, you can't decide that for me — I have no interest in joining Anbu."
Shisui adopted a more serious tone. "Yuan, an Uchiha in Anbu helps bridge ties between clan and village."
Yuan replied coldly, "You're naïve, Shisui. One Anbu seat won't change the rift between our clan and the village."
Shisui's brow tightened but then smoothed. "Yuan — your strength is such that the village and clan would take you seriously. Don't disappoint me."
Yuan glanced Shisui over. The other carried a tantō on his back and several kunai at his waist — fully armed. "Do you have an assignment?" Yuan asked.
"Yes. The village sent me southeast toward the coast — there are signs of a large Kirigakure incursion," Shisui said.
Yuan frowned. "Why didn't they notify me?"
Shisui said, "The Third likely had other considerations. Plus, with me, the mission is covered."
He checked the sky. "I must go. Farewell."
With that, Shisui's figure blurred and he used Body Flicker Technique to vanish from the clearing.
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