Work Text:
“Behind Your Back”
Captain Yamato fully expected to face many horrors on his post.
After all, he was keeping an eye on a person, who was a monster in all but appearance and even that was on the uncanny side of things.
Time passed slowly, one months after another, leaving Yamato feeling more and more tense not because Orochimaru was turning to his old ways but because he wasn't.
Orochimaru wasn't doing anything but the things he was told to do - hiding away from the public eye, working and editing his notes on the barrier seals he promised Commander- the Hokage.
Yamato already searched the whole base through and he did that more than once, carefully poking at walls and floors, looking for hidden rooms and compartments that could be used to stash the suspicious stuff.
After all, Orochimaru had to choose this particular outpost as the place of his research - and house arrest - for a reason.
It was right by the border of the Fire Country - still officially the territory of the Country of the Rice Paddies - and looked much more modern than the other places: the confusing maze of corridors was fully finished instead of being a mix of natural caverns and tunnels with rocky, uneven walls, shining with white, cold surface of tiles reflecting the electric light.
It looked ridiculously expensive and so did the laboratory he was spending most of his days in.
With a hum, Yamato considered breaking his orders - he was not supposed to interact with Orochimaru in any way, Kakashi stated it pretty clearly, but Yamato started to fear that without provoking the snake sannin, the guy could do something he was not supposed to do.
He was a sneaky enough to pull it off.
Four months in, the message falcon delivered an information - his skillset was needed on an ANBU mission and a team of trackers will take the post in his stead.
Yamato had a bad feeling about it.
xxx
Two weeks later the orders to keep away from Orochimaru meant little to nothing to Yamato.
"What the actual hell!" he marched right into the lab and shouted, demanding answers.
Orochimaru turned around, smiling like a very satisfied cat, completely not startled by the sudden interruption, doors hitting the wall, or Yamato scream his lungs out. If anything, he looked baffled.
"How nice of you to visit!" he said with a smile. "But isn't it against your orders?"
"Yours were to sit here and don't move," Yamato growled. "And here we are in the middle of a political clusterfuck!"
Said clusterfuck was the Daimyo of the Rice Paddies once again and out of nowhere recognizing the Village Hidden in Sound as an official shinobi village and with Orochimaru as the leader.
"Is it one though?" Orochimaru hummed, tapping his chin with a finger like he was carefully considering the situation instead of openly mocking him.
"You are under surveillance of Konoha," Yamato groaned.
Keeping a watchful eye over a person of interest was fine, but openly walking into the territory of another shinobi village was not. Not with the delicate balance that could be tipped over by literally any little thing.
Just like Orochimaru managed to use the political situation to save his head, he now was using it to regain his freedom.
"How did you do it anyway?" he finally asked, shoulders slumbering in defeat.
"Did what?"
"Talk the Daimyo into helping you," he spat. "The last time that man did that, you dragged his economy down with your failed invasion."
Orochimaru hummed happily before answering.
"You are one of the reasons why he decided to do so," the sing-song tone of his voice was absolutely infuriating.
"What?"
"As a gesture of good faith between our villages, I'll let you on a secret," Orochimaru's smile widened even more. "The Rice Daimyo thinks like a shinobi."
"What?" Yamato asked again. "If you have something to say, say it outright."
Orochimaru rolled his eyes.
"He's fairly aware of my situation and of Konoha looking at my hands at all times," he finally explained. "That means I can't allow myself to do whatever whenever mood strikes."
Yamato narrowed his eyes.
That made a certain amount of sense. With Orochimaru being pretty much at the Daimyos mercy, the man could use the Sound village as his own military and Konoha's watchful eye would ensure the history would not repeat itself.
And Orochimaru was a genius, in more things than murder - even with his past, Orochimaru was a precious, precious resource for anyone who dared to claim him.
"The Daimyo is naturally aware of my deal with the current Hokage," Orochimaru continued. "And doesn't mind it. It's an actual opportunity for creating an alliance with Konoha, built on the benefits I can deliver."
"Benefits?"
"I was ordered to research a certain things for the Daimyo and he decided to share the benefits of it with Konoha upon finishing," Orochimaru said, explaining nothing.
Yamato grit his teeth.
"This is why you picked this place, isn't it?" he guessed. "It wasn't the access to your notes and previous materials or the equipment. You knew the Daimyo would reach out to you."
"There are men in this world even I can refuse," Orochimaru chuckled.
It seemed that the Rice Daimyo was indeed thinking like a shinobi - fully capable of working with men that severely harmed them not that long ago, happy to use any resources that were on hand.
"We're going to talk about it," Yamato promised, or maybe warned, turning on his heel.
He had an urgent report to write.
"If you decide to not mention this little chat I'm not going to do so either," Orochimaru waved him goodbye, voice mockingly sweet. "Pinky promise!"
Yamato was tempted to go and punch his teeth out, but he knew it just wasn't worth it.
He doubted it would even work at all, so why bother?
He had other things to occupy his mind with anyway; did Orochimaru threw them a bone in exchange for ignoring him not being where he was supposed to be or it was yet another game of a very bored, very tricky shinobi?
And if so, then why, what he was getting out of it?
And what did he get for rolling over for the Daimyo if Orochimaru was telling the truth?