Kimimaro Kaguya

## Appearance

Kimimaro was characterised by his pale skin, vivid green eyes, masculine facial features, two scarlet dots on his forehead which all the members of his clan possessed, and shoulder-length white hair, which he wore divided down the middle on his head (distinguished by an atypical 'zigzag' hair parting) with two separate partings on either side of his face. As a child, Kimimaro's hair is longer, which is tied in a loose pony-tail near the middle of his back, though the initial style was very similar to his later one.

Under the wing of Orochimaru, Kimimaro wore a specialised version of the traditional Oto-nin ensemble, consisting of a light lavender, loose-fitting, long-sleeved, zip-up shirt, black pants cut off around mid-calf, bandages wrapped around his ankles, traditional shinobi sandals, and a purple, rope-like belt tied in an inverted bow around his waist. He also wore two red, tube-like hair ornaments; one on either side of his head, securing two locks of his silvery-white hair. His Cursed Seal of Earth is applied at the base of his throat, where it is a circular pattern of three curved lines.

## Personality

Unlike the rest of his clan, Kimimaro didn't have a particular interest in fighting or killing and saw his abilities only as a means to be of use to others. He was a calm and quiet individual who would dedicate himself to whatever mission was at hand. As a child, he was more gentle despite his natural talent for combat and unique abilities which made him the strongest of his clan, as seen from him not wanting to hurt others he had no involvement with, and his interest in flowers. His gentleness is also reinforced by how empathetic and kind he was to Jūgo, being one of the few people able to keep Jūgo from losing control over himself.

After meeting Orochimaru, Kimimaro developed a strong devotion towards him, bordering on religious zeal or considering him a father figure (the manga suggesting the former, and the anime suggesting the latter), seeing Orochimaru's apparent kindness as a reason from him to exist under the notion that serving Orochimaru in any way is the only purpose he has. Though Kimimaro's relationship with Orochimaru was similar to Haku's relationship with Zabuza, the only difference was that Orochimaru ultimately lost interest in him when he became of no use to him. Regardless, finding a new way to assert his existence, Kimimaro's dedication to Orochimaru was so great that he both willed his body to fight and proved to be an extremely dangerous opponent for the likes of Naruto Uzumaki, Rock Lee and Gaara. Gaara compared the eyes of Kimimaro to those of Sasuke Uchiha's, the eyes of those who only sought to prove their own existence, nothing more. Even after being reincarnated by Kabuto, Kimimaro retained his loyalty to Orochimaru and intended to carry out Kabuto's orders. Gaaracommented on Kimimaro to be hasty and a extreme distaste for weak opponents, or "trash" ninja as he put it. As a result, he would kill any he considered "trash" ninja, regardless if they were friend or foe as was with the case of Tayuya for her group's failure to deliver Sasuke in time.

Despite his verbal disrespect of his opponents and over underestimating of their abilities, Kimimaro differs from his four colleagues in three ways: the first having a sense of honour in battle, as demonstrated when he halts to allow Lee time to take his medicine (though unaware it was actually alcohol that would strengthen Lee's combat abilities). Second was he does not have any faults that would hamper any progress, and even found how his team being so late to be intolerable, something Orochimaru took confidence in.

## Background

Being a rare possessor of his clan's Shikotsumyaku kekkei genkai, the clan patriarch feared Kimimaro's abilities and had him locked up in a cage unless needed for battle. The Kaguya clan was wiped out when they attacked Kirigakure, seemingly for no reason other than the desire to kill and show off their ferocity. Having underestimated their opponents' defences, they were slaughtered, with Kimimaro the sole survivor. Wandering soon after, Kimimaro was eventually found by Orochimaru, and recruited as one of his most loyal ninja.

Under Orochimaru, Kimimaro found purpose in his life as he desired to ensure the continuation of his master's dreams and ambitions. Though Orochimaru took him under his wing to be one of his future hosts, Kimimaro did not mind such a fate if it meant being of aid to his master. Soon after, Kimimaro met Jūgo, a berserker whom Kimimaro felt a kindred spirit with. Kimimaro's friendship with Jūgo led to the events that resulted with him being branded by the cursed seal that Orochimaru developed from his research on Jūgo, whom Kimimaro talked into being experimented on in hopes that it would help him. With his new-found powers, Kimimaro defeated all four members of the Sound Four single-handed to be inducted into the renamed Sound Five. However, Kimimaro became afflicted by an unknown disease that destroyed what remaining worth he was to Orochimaru. Kabuto Yakushi attempted to cure Kimimaro, but to no avail due to Kimimaro's unique structure and lack of medical information on his clan. Kimimaro was left bedridden to extend his wavering lifespan, unable to participate in the Konoha Crush, which Kabuto claimed to be the factor that led to their defeat and retreat.

In the anime, it was shown that Kimimaro acted as a herald to shinobi clans in the Land of Sound in order for them to swear loyalty to Orochimaru, such as the Fūma clan. After infiltrating Konoha during the Chūnin Exams, the Sound Five killed three Kusagakure genin, so that Orochimaru could impersonate Shiore. At this point, he gave a bloody cough, but decided to ignore it. However, while participating in the assassination of the Fourth Kazekage and his bodyguards so that Orochimaru and the Sound Four could impersonate them, Kimimaro's disease fully manifests. He is sent back to Otogakure to be placed by Kabuto in intense medical care to keep him alive for as long as possible. Hearing that his failing health has caused him to be of no use to Orochimaru, Kimimaro began silently crying for losing his purpose.

## Plot

Kimimaro first appeared when Sieg and the rest of Team 7 were confront Orochimaru. He told Orochimaru he could be useful and handle the fight, so Orochimaru left and Team 7 went after him. Sieg and Kimimaro started threatening each other when Kimimaro started coughing blood due to his sickness and Sieg retorted with "I'm sorry, what was that? I couldn't hear you over the sound of you coughing up your insides.". They then started fighting and Sieg won. Kimimaro started asking himself what Orochimaru saw him as, and Sieg tried to convince him Orochimaru was evil, but Kimimaro said he would always follow Orochimaru. As he knew that he was now useless to Orochimaru, Kimimaro said he had no reason to live and Sieg offered himself to end his life quickly, but he refused, as he would like to see Orochimaru. Both of them stayed there and waited, but Orochimaru didn't come and Kimimaro asked Sieg to leave him there, but Team 7 came back and they brought Kimimaro to Konoha to try finding information about Orochimaru.

At Konoha, Kimimaro was tortured both psychologically and physically by Ibiki Morino, but he still didn't reveal anything about Orochimaru, so Sieg used the Psycho Mind Transmission Jutsu to discover anything. He saw the memories of Kimimaro's childhood and some times when he was already Orochimaru's sbordinate, and how Kabuto told Kimimaro that he was going to be Orochimaru's next vessel just to agonize him.

When Sieg finished using the jutsu, he apologized to Kimimaro for everything and used Tatsumiya's healing magic to heal him and extend his lifetime for a few more time. Orochimaru then appeared and Kimimaro used this opportunity to ask him what he meant to him. However, Orochimaru said that now that he had been taken hostage, he was nothing more than a burden to him and added that he had been a burden since he got sick, but could redeem himself if he escoltedm Orochimaru until the hideout. Knowing nobody would like it if they discovered he had let them go, Sieg asked Orochimaru to knock him out.

Sieg woke up some time later and went after them. He found Orochimaru, along with an almost dying Kimimaro near some dead bodies. Kimimaro then fell to his knees and vomited a lot of blood. His last words to Orochimaru were "I'm sorry for being a burden, I'm glad I could redeem myself in the end... I don't know where I'm going now, but that doesn't matter... because I'll always admire and respect you. Thank you for everything, Orochimaru-sama..." before he fell on the ground and died.

He was later buried by Sieg, who said he didn't care how much he hated him, because he would make sue he got a proper burial like he deserved, and planted Kimimaro's bone knife on the ground next to the grave so that people would know what he wielded.