- Your Character Is Moved To Tears. Whats A Kindness That Another Showed To Them?

😂 - Your character is moved to tears. What’s a kindness that another showed to them?

// When Orochimaru's parents died, Tsunade invited him to stay the night at the Senju compound. She made sure his favorite foods were served at dinner and that a bed was made up for him. Jiraiya tagged along, and they spent nearly the whole night doing whatever Orochimaru wanted to do. While he didn't cry at the time, as soon as Orochimaru came home to his empty house, he felt the tears slide down his face, both at the reminder that his mother and father would no longer be waiting for him, but also at how kind and supportive his friends were.

Karin's withdrawal from his touch alerted Orochimaru to the extent of his mistake in handling her, relatively minor, he had to admit, transgression, though he also had to admit he'd gone so far as to kill several of his lackeys for little more than being in the wrong place at the wrong time when he was in the wrong mood. It remained a difficult tightrope for him to walk; too much leniency and his men would view him as ineffective and weak. Too much restriction and they might begin to chafe against them and possibly desert--taking his secrets in tow. But then again, the ones he'd killed were often the one's he could afford to kill, low level grunts or failed experiments that no one would miss. He could not afford to lose Karin. Not a carrier of those precious Uzumaki genes, rare as pearls among swine after the destruction of their village. And she was part of his trusted inner circle, a willing and obedient assistant in some of his most profound research. If she were to desert, it would be nothing short of total disaster for him. Which meant that now, he would have to rebuild her trust in him from the ground up where a moment of anger had so rashly torn it down, soothe her fears and woo her back to his side. And it must be done soon, and with as much subtlety as to leave her unaware of it. He nodded, stepping back to place a more respectful distance between them. When he spoke, he kept his tone soft, inserting shades of genuine remorse into his inflections. "Very good, my dear. Now, if you're ready, you may return to your duties. Your comrades need your skills."

His features softened as he watched her stiffen, the scent of her fear rich and fragrant. It pleased him to see how beautifully intact her mental conditioning was despite her drunken state, though his threats seemed to have snapped her back to alertness with a far more cruel efficiency than any physical blow.

Gliding up to her, Orochimaru brushed a strand of her wild red hair away from her face. Ah, how tender, how delicate--like a little mouse quivering in the grass, hoping the snake will pass by without striking. "There's my girl," he soothed. "I know you didn't mean to upset me. You were obviously led astray, hmm? Just be a little more careful, next time."

What was Orochimaru’s relationship like with his parents, and how did their deaths impact him?

// This is a very good question, and I think it's something that doesn't really get talked about so much. I think Orochimaru was very close with his parents and saw them much as any child would see their mother and father, as a source of strength, protection and comfort. I think they cherished him, since he was their only child, and did everything they could to make sure he had the best life they could possibly give him. They literally sacrificed their lives for him, and I think that's something that's always left him deeply scarred. It was the first step on his road to darkness, a cold realization that his parents wouldn't always be there for him and that his family--any family--could be ripped apart by war. In my opinion, Orochimaru never really stopped grieving them; he continued to visit their graves even when he openly declared that death was meaningless. He never speaks of them, because the pain is still fresh even decades later. I think he only comes to accept it after the Fourth War when he confronts his own crimes and mistakes. He wanted to live forever so he could meet his parents again, but we see that's no longer his goal. It won't ever stop hurting, but he's at last learned to live with the hurt and put the past behind him.

What was Orochimaru’s initial impression of Jiraiya and Tsunade?

// Oh, dear. XD His initial impression of Jiraya was that he was very energetic and had a tendency to be loud and a little obnoxious, but was otherwise tolerable. He had a much better opinion about Tsunade, since he could see straightaway that she was smart like he was, though he didn't really care for her temper tantrums. But his quiet, studious, and overall sensible nature tended to balance out his teammates' more boisterous personalities, and they helped him come out of his shell a little, getting out and about when he probably otherwise would have just stayed at home. The adage "opposites attract" I think really fits their dynamic well.

@senjutsunade

"It hurts because it mattered." - Unknown

Would Orochimaru ever settle for something less than immortality? What would that look like?

// No, I don't think he ever would. Immortality has always been Orochimaru's greatest desire, and he's too obsessed with it and with his research to simply drop his pursuit. I think during the course of the series, he's proven well enough that no power in the universe could stop him from getting what he wants, Sasuke and Itachi aside. Even in Boruto, which I don't care for, after Orochimaru has become "good" (in the sense that any shinobi can ever really be good), he's managed to achieve perfect immortality and will outlive everyone else. He's living the dream.