"If you want to come, take your damned meds then, we don't need you keeling over from a blood infection halfway there!"

"I don't need to take orders from you."

"Right now, I'm you less irrational from pain. Take your meds, you'll feel less like a grouchy blight on the planet. Or I'm leaving you here; I don't need to tell you where Tsunade is, you know."

Orochimaru scowls, but they finally acquiesce. Slowly and grouchily, though.

(Rian has had it up to here with Orochimaru, and yes they're well aware they're essentially frustrated at themselves. But they'll take what they can get.)

Orochimaru does, in fact, feel better after taking the medicine. They're never going to admit to this, but they feel better. And slightly embarrassed now at how they'd been acting.

Jiraiya, meanwhile, has been attempting to teach Mariko a technique that she's pretty sure she'll never use, not being a close-ranged fighter, rather than seals like she wants him to teach her. Does she look like the sort of person who cares that a technique was developed by the Fourth? She likes the Second better, and she makes sure to tell Jiraiya this. Loudly.

"If you're going to teach me a signature technique, why not the Hiraishin? That's proper sealing there - " she starts.

"Eh, well, there's the Second's notes... But we never really had the Fourth's improvements... And even the people he taught it to aren't very good at it, they only know the basics," Jiraiya responds.

"Then give me the Second's notes! How hard can improving it be, it's just math."

(Some would say she shouldn't have opened her big mouth, what with it turning out to be in fact much harder than she'd thought, but, hey, it got Jiraiya to give her the notes, so. And 'harder than she thought' still isn't that hard, math is math no matter how many extra variables you add. Seriously did the Second have a thing for overcomplicating his techniques, she's starting to suspect something like that. She's not going to finish this in a month. She might not finish it in a year, even. She doesn't particularly care, it's fascinating, and when she wants faster results she can work on her Adamantine Chains, which she so far can only attack or weakly defend with, not seal.)

It's been an entire month since they lost the use of their arms, and Orochimaru's been in a steadily increasing amount of pain (when not heavily medicated, and the medication makes them nauseous and just differently miserable). Rian's been able to step up, Kabuto's finally there to work for them full time, but it's still not enough.

Tanzaku-gai. Tsunade's last known location. They doubt she'll have moved on before they get there; the town's a popular tourist destination, flush with bars and gambling dens. Exactly her type of place.

They consider making a grand entrance. Perhaps dramatically blowing something up. They're in a mood, right now, and surely a bit of mayhem will make them feel better. People might get hurt or even killed, though, and they're so very much not in the mood to make future work for themselves.

Orochimaru takes Kabuto with them, and Chihiro for good measure (being able to track Tsunade can't hurt, and the sensor nin-cat's more biddable, has a longer history with them, and is easier to hide than Karin). They wait on the street outside the gambling den Chihiro thinks Tsunade's in, Orochimaru leaning casually against a wall (and trying not to collapse. Why are they so dizzy, it's just a bit of necrotic tissue...).

Tsunade does emerge soon enough, a wary look on her face, apprentice and pet pig in tow.

She stops when she sees her ex-teammate, crossing her arms and looking over him. "It's been a very long time... Orochimaru."

He looks sick. Feverish, fatigued, arrhythmia, tachycardia, dyspnea, faint signs of pain around his eyes... High probability of an infection, possibly even sepsis. 

"What do you want from me? I'm guessing you're not here to talk about the old days."

"I wouldn't mind, in fact. I've recently found myself with... A new appreciation for my old memories. But as for the reason I sought you out... I have a small favor to ask of you."

"Find someone else," she says, raising a hand. "I've resigned from medical treatment."

"I'm not exactly spoiled for choice. You're the only one even theoretically able to heal this wound."

"That arm of yours... It's no ordinary wound, is it? What did that?" Likely some kind of jutsu, but she isn't aware of any with that sort of effect...

They're quiet for a moment, mulling over what they should say. A lie would benefit them the most, but they find themselves disliking falsehoods far more than they did as the old Orochimaru, and even he was often blunt to a fault.

"I was careless in killing the Third."

Sheer rage washes over her.

"You would really - " she starts, then has to stop, her anger and frustration choking her.

"Hmph. You still cared for him, even after everything he did... Death comes to all things, I would think you especially would know that... But soon all that will be washed away... Consider it more temporarily removing a piece from the board, than a killing."

There's something different about him...

"So now you've started raving, in addition to your usual madness."

They can't help it; they chuckle. "Mad? No. Merely... Ambitious. I have found myself desiring to spread the fruits of my labor, of late."

"I never knew you to be altruistic."

"Ha, no, that Orochimaru never was. But you see, I recently found myself in an interesting situation... I resonated. Turned over a new leaf, so to speak. Found myself an entirely new person."

She's more aware than most that resonance isn't merely two people finding compatibility, but more a merger. She's seen enough of the aftereffects.

"And yet you still manage to be yourself."

"Rather a talent I have. But we're not here to chit-chat, rather to negotiate..."

"You should have led with that. I'm not interested in the slightest; go away."

"Tsunade-sama... Only you can heal Orochimaru-sama's arms," Kabuto interrupts. "Just hear us out, our offer's not that bad..."

"I'll count to five... If you're still in front of me when I finish, I'll remove you myself."

Orochimaru considers what to say as she counts down, then: "I can return them to life. Your brother and the man you loved." When she freezes, they continue with, "Don't you want to see them again, Tsunade?"

"...And what will you do, if I heal your arms?"