Chapter Text
It was a dreary, rainy sort of day, the type that meant very little actual rain and a lot of mist and dark clouds overhead. Everyone with sense and the capabilities to be inside was inside, save for Orochimaru, who was on a walk.
He walked along the dirt road along the outskirts of town, the path brushing the edges of the forest, and inhaled the heavy scent of petrichor. It soothed his frayed nerves; he did not like having Jiraiya so close, even if the other Sannin had yet to seek him out.
Golden eyes that shone like polished citrine swept over the path in front of them. Orochimaru ached for a cup of tea (perhaps jasmine?) and some time under the kotatsu with Anko, Tenzo, and Kabuto nearby like stray kittens. All three of his little snakelings had been gone from the village for some time on separate missions, and though he loathed to admit it, he was… empty nesting. Just a bit.
As he walked, he heard a strange noise. A whimper, almost, like a little dog begging for food. He stopped, cursing his soft heart, and looked around.
His eyes fell upon the form of a child curled into a ball next to a trash can, wearing the gaudiest shade of orange Orochimaru had seen in… several years, probably. Against his better judgment, he approached the little one, looking to see why exactly a child was out on a day like this.
“Hello, little one,” he said gently as he approached. “Are you waiting for someone?”
The child peered up at him over their knees with piercingly blue eyes. Orochimaru, however, was more concerned about the whiskers on their cheeks. Ah, he thought. The jinchuuriki.
Uzumaki Naruto blinked, then looked around as if under the impression that Orochimaru was speaking to someone else, before finally responding. “No. I was… I didn’t wanna be in the orphanage anymore,” he finally settled on after a few false starts.
Orochimaru nodded. “I understand. When I was young I often did the same. My name is Yashagoro Orochimaru, and I am a jounin of this village.”
“‘M Naruto Uzumaki,” the boy mumbled. Upon hearing that Orochimaru was a jounin, he uncurled a bit, looking at Orochimaru over his knees.
Hesitating briefly, Orochimaru said, “Would you like to get some dinner? I have not eaten yet.”
Damn it, Anko and Kabuto were right; he was too weak to strays.
The little boy relaxed a little more, peeking up at Orochimaru a little more hopefully. “Really? Can we get ramen?”
Oh. Orochimaru recalled the boy’s mother’s ramen obsession, given that he’d spent enough time with Jiraiya, who spent more than enough time with Minato, who had married the woman. Of course such a thing would be genetic. That would be Orochimaru’s luck.
“If that is what you like, it can be provided.”
Naruto squinted at him for a moment, before seemingly deciding. “Yeah, okay.”
“Would you please hold my hand? So you don’t get lost?” He offered one long-fingered, bony hand to the boy, who looked at it for a moment. Naruto seemed confused and hesitant for a moment, before putting his own tiny little hand in Orochimaru’s.
Orochimaru squeezed it gently, smiling at him before straightening up and tucking the little boy carefully under the umbrella he carried. How old was he…? Five? It had been five years since the Kyuubi attack, so that must be correct. He was far too light for a five-year-old, and rather short for one, too.
Orochimaru didn’t shunshin; he merely walked the wandering path back closer to the center of the village with the small boy tucked against his leg, hand in hand, and felt something in himself settle. It had… been a long time since he’d spent time with a child who looked at him with… not trust, per se, but something that approached it.
Naruto, of course, chattered incessantly about this and that as they walked. Orochimaru answered each inane question easily, warmly, and felt warm. He felt bright, and soft, in a way he had not in a long time.
“Ochimaru, are you a boy or a girl? You’re so pretty,” the blond chirped, the little hand (so small, so delicate) not in Orochimaru’s own holding onto Orochimaru’s yukata.
Orochimaru smiled despite himself. “ Orochi maru, little one. And really, I’m neither, and both.”
The little boy’s jaw dropped. “Woah, really? That’s so cool! I didn’t know you could be neither!”
The Sannin simply nodded, a fond little feeling in his chest starting to bloom. ( Don’t get attached, you can’t keep him一) “It’s not so uncommon among shinobi, especially the high-ranking ones.”
Naruto seemed to consider that, falling largely silent as they walked the rest of the way to the ramen stall Orochimaru recalled Kushina eating at relatively often. He lifted the boy, setting him down on a stool and taking a seat next to him.
“Naruto-kun, what would you recommend?”
Orochimaru was both doing his best to make the boy comfortable and genuinely asking for advice; when Tenzo was home, he usually cooked, and if he was gone, Orochimaru cooked for the rest of his nest of snakelings. He didn’t often eat out.
Naruto thought for a moment, then said, “Pork belly and miso!”
Orochimaru smiled indulgently, then repeated the order to the kindly-looking civilian behind the counter. “Two bowls of miso pork belly ramen, please.”
Said bowls were set in front of both Naruto and Orochimaru after a few short minutes, and both dug in. Naruto finished his bowl before Orochimaru was even halfway done with his, and proceeded to turn the most lethal puppy-dog eyes the world had ever seen onto the Sannin, who felt himself lose the emotional battle before he even began it.
“Another bowl for him, please,” he said before sipping again on the broth. It was hot and rich and salty, perfect for staving off the pervasive chill of the autumn.
Naruto scarfed down the next bowl, too, and Orochimaru waved on a third. He wondered if the appetite was an Uzumaki trait or part of being the jinchuuriki; he remembered Kushina’s being just as voracious.
“Hey, Oro-chan, you’re kinda weird,” Naruto said suddenly, putting down his bowl for a moment. A bit of broth spilled over the edge, splattering on the counter. It steamed in the cold air before cooling rapidly.
Orochimaru raised an eyebrow at the nickname. “Pardon me?”
“Well, you’re really strong, right? ‘Cause you’re a jounin. But you’re nice, an’ you smell like flowers, an’ you got me ramen . And ramen is the best .”
Orochimaru has always been weak for strays. Of course, he couldn’t rightly say that.
“I simply wanted to help. Naruto-kun, why were you outside by yourself?”
The boy chewed on his lip before slurping broth loudly. When he put his bowl back down again, he finally answered, “...The lady at the orphanage is mean. She says I’m a monster and that I should never have been born.”
Orochimaru was too reminded of his own youth for a long, painful moment.
“How foolish. I see nothing more than a child before me, albeit a bright one.”
Naruto frowned at him. “I’m gonna be the Hokage! I’m not a kid!”
His soft eyebrows, pale and floaty against his tan skin, furrowed and his nose scrunched up in a pout.
Orochimaru merely smiled, reaching out and brushing the flyaway hair off the boy’s forehead. The child flinched away, before relaxing slowly, inch by painful inch, as he realized that Orochimaru wasn't trying to hit him.
The fact that he flinched at all made Orochimaru want to kill someone.
“Eat your ramen, little one. After we’re done, we’ll go see the Hokage, and talk about the lady at the orphanage, ok?”
Naruto seemed to settle at that, returning to scarfing down ramen. Orochimaru himself only managed a bowl and a half, offering the rest of his second to the boy, who devoured it with relish. Naruto set his last bowl down, then looked at Orochimaru slightly nervously.
“Are we really going to go see Jiji? What if he’s busy?”
“I promise, he’s not too busy for us. Would you like to know something, little one?”
Naruto leaned forwards a little, blinking owlishly at Orochimaru. “What?”
“Your Jiji used to be my teacher. I’m sure he won’t mind us visiting him.”
The blond boy looked starstruck. “Really? You were Jiji’s student? But he’s so old!”
Orochimaru pet the boy’s head again. He… reminded him of Anko as a little girl, desperate and hungry for affection. He couldn’t wait to see how Naruto grew up, especially if someone ensured he ate well and trained often.
He paid and gathered the boy in his arms despite his protests, shunshining all the way to the Hokage tower. Orochimaru slipped past the chunin at the desk, past the secretaries and the workers, and entered Hiruzen’s office. The old man was hunched over his desk, working on paperwork.
Hiruzen looked up, shocked to see Orochimaru, and for good reason.
After reporting Danzo, he’d … kept to himself, mostly. Orochimaru still had labs, of course, still experimented, but that had really been the end of it. He rarely took on missions, rarely left the village, and occupied his time with more tame forms of research. He saw Hiruzen perhaps every few months, and those intermittent visits were not usually of his own accord.
But here he was, with a boy in his arms, wriggly and vibrant and so, so painfully young.
“Sensei,” Orochimaru greeted, inclining his head regally.
“Jiji!” Naruto crowed, squirming free and dropping to the ground surprisingly gracefully. He darted over to the old man’s desk, sitting on the corner. “Hi, Jiji! I met Oro-chan and he’s really nice and bought me ramen and carried me and it was really nice!”
Hiruzen laughed. “It’s good to see you both. To what do I owe the pleasure?”
Orochimaru hesitated, before sitting down. “Naruto told me he’s been having trouble at the orphanage. I would like to propose a thorough investigation of the staff.”
Hiruzen took in a deep breath. Instead of answering, he said, “Naruto-kun, why don’t you go outside and play for a few minutes?”
Naruto pouted, clinging to Orochimaru’s leg. “I don’t wanna. I wanna stay with you and Oro.”
Orochimaru gently pet Naruto’s fluffy hair. “You can come back in a few minutes, little one. I just have to talk to your Jiji about a few things.”
“Fine…” With a pout, Naruto left the room. Hiruzen sighed in relief.
“Orochimaru-kun, there simply isn’t anything left for me to do. I’ve had this orphanage investigated twice already.”
Orochimaru pulled on a lock of his own hair. “What about moving him to another orphanage?”
“There are six in Konoha, yes? Naruto has been in all of them at one point or another. They simply won’t keep him. At this point, my last option is getting him an apartment of his own.”
“Are you insane ? He’s five . He can’t live alone. He can’t even go grocery shopping without getting spat on!” Orochimaru seethed at Hiruzen’s idiocy. “What if someone breaks in? How will he feed himself? He wouldn’t even be able to reach the stove.”
Hiruzen watched with a strange expression.
“Orochimaru-kun… you have three children, yes? Young Anko and Kabuto, as well as Tenzo.”
Taken aback, Orochimaru nodded. “Yes, why?”
“So you would say that you have experience with children.”
Orochimaru caught onto Hiruzen’s thread. “I do… but I do not have the ability to care for Naruto right now.”
Hiruzen raised an eyebrow. “And why not?”
“I…” he hesitated a moment. “I am quite busy with my current children, thank you.”
Hiruzen merely raised an eyebrow. Orochimaru thought of that sweet little boy living alone, burning his hand on the stove and having no one to patch it up for him. Or, worse; someone breaking in during a lax guard’s shift and hurting him.
He felt himself give in. “Alright. I’ll take custody of him.
“Wonderful. I’ll file the papers,” Hiruzen smiled. He stood and opened the door, beckoning the jinchuuriki back in.
“Naruto-kun, you’ll be staying with Orochimaru for a while, okay? Please be good for him.”
Naruto’s face lit up. “Really? I get to stay with Oro-chan?”
He bounced over, taking Orochimaru’s larger, paler hand again. He was so small it hurt.
Orochimaru nodded. “Yes. You’ll have… other people living with us, too; my little ones Kabuto, Tenzo, and Anko.”
Hiruzen looked smug as a cat. “This arrangement might be very good for both of you, you know.”
Orochimaru scowled at the old man over Naruto’s little head.
Naruto clung to Orochimaru’s pant leg as they both waved goodbye to Hiruzen and left (through the door this time). Naruto’s little mouth ran a mile a minute, speculating about Orochimaru’s other little snakelings, and Orochimaru was… content, for once.
(He supposed he wouldn’t be empty-nesting for a while yet.)