Orochimaru bared his fangs in a vicious warning, hissing and drawing back, eyes narrowing, but- He froze as someone else stepped in front of him - not coming to the forefront of the loud handful of idiots who had tried to corner him, but blocking Orochimaru, back to him - and a warm shoulder brushed his own.
"You're our teammate now." Tsunade said with a fierce little huff, winding her arm through his own as Jiraiya started to shout, chasing away the others; Orochimaru had never needed anyone to stand up for him, but . . . his chest tightened and he curled his arm around Tsunade's as Jiraiya came back to them with a grin.
~
"Why do I put up with you?" Tsunade asked, but allowed herself to be pulled down between her boys, laughing; Jiraiya warm and broad on one side, blocking off the rest of the world, Orochimaru slim and cosy on the other, between her and the wall. "You're both horrible."
"Like you wanted to be on that dull-as-dust mission with that idiotic headman any more than we did." Orochimaru said with a little twist of a sneer that did little to mar his eerie prettiness; Jiraiya was muttering heartfelt agreement from behind Tsunade, and . . . well, she couldn't exactly argue, no.
~
"How dare you!" Tsunade nearly screamed, fingers flexing, and Jiraiya was tempted to point out Orochimaru had only quoted the truth - Tsunade had left Konoha, long before Orochimaru had and with . . . perhaps less reason. Jiraiya couldn't exactly argue on his own behalf, either - he'd never been declared a nukenin, but perhaps only because their old sensei had always given him the most slack; he'd barely set foot in their village for nearly two decades.
"Perhaps rather than railing at me in an attempt to hide your own guilty conscience," Orochimaru said in his most venomous, velvety tones, "you should wonder at the village that drove all of us - her strongest and, once, her most loyal - to flee, not only her but each other."
Twisted Team (Naruto; Jiraiya/Tsunade/Orochimaru) x3
"You're our teammate now." Tsunade said with a fierce little huff, winding her arm through his own as Jiraiya started to shout, chasing away the others; Orochimaru had never needed anyone to stand up for him, but . . . his chest tightened and he curled his arm around Tsunade's as Jiraiya came back to them with a grin.
~
"Why do I put up with you?" Tsunade asked, but allowed herself to be pulled down between her boys, laughing; Jiraiya warm and broad on one side, blocking off the rest of the world, Orochimaru slim and cosy on the other, between her and the wall. "You're both horrible."
"Like you wanted to be on that dull-as-dust mission with that idiotic headman any more than we did." Orochimaru said with a little twist of a sneer that did little to mar his eerie prettiness; Jiraiya was muttering heartfelt agreement from behind Tsunade, and . . . well, she couldn't exactly argue, no.
~
"How dare you!" Tsunade nearly screamed, fingers flexing, and Jiraiya was tempted to point out Orochimaru had only quoted the truth - Tsunade had left Konoha, long before Orochimaru had and with . . . perhaps less reason. Jiraiya couldn't exactly argue on his own behalf, either - he'd never been declared a nukenin, but perhaps only because their old sensei had always given him the most slack; he'd barely set foot in their village for nearly two decades.
"Perhaps rather than railing at me in an attempt to hide your own guilty conscience," Orochimaru said in his most venomous, velvety tones, "you should wonder at the village that drove all of us - her strongest and, once, her most loyal - to flee, not only her but each other."