Contingency

by
Tychos Kouros

...

"Hey, Kitten." Itachi looked up from the register, giving the same, tired, welcome-may-I-take-your-order smile he'd been giving all morning.

"Good morning, Mr. Hoshi—"

"Kisame. It's Kisame, Kitten, we've discussed this." Itachi stared at him, before looking away.

"Your usual?" Kisame nodded, and Itachi put in the order.

"You know, you said once that if the world was about to end you'd consider that date with me," Kisame said, leaning on the counter.

"Seven thirty-nine," Itachi said to himself, reaching down for the ten dollar bill he knew was already on the counter.

"So have you at least thought about my offer?" Itachi counted the bills a second time as he put them in Kisame's hand, avoiding the question. He looked up when Kisame didn't move, and saw that he wasn't smiling anymore. "Just lunch some time?" Itachi looked at his watch. The next customer in line was tapping his foot, huffing, and otherwise making a show of being agitated.

"My shift is over in ten minutes, if you want to wait." Kisame flashed his teeth as he grinned, nodding. Itachi grabbed two chicken biscuits while the coffee was pouring, setting them down by the register. He noticed Kisame's chest flexing through the green tank top as he leaned on the counter, but looked back down at the coffee when Kisame caught him looking. When Itachi was finished and handed him the coffee, Kisame pushed off the counter, grabbing his order with a final grin before moving to the same table he sat at every morning. The next man in line began rattling off his order as soon as Kisame was out of the way.


Sasuke rubbed his cheek against Naruto's, tightening the arm that was wrapped around the waist settled between his legs. Naruto was busy changing the channels, trying to find anything that wasn't an infomercial or a news report. Naruto threw his head back after a minute, sighing.

"There's officially nothing on."

"You should have figured that out a few hundred channel changes ago, Dobe," Sasuke said, kissing Naruto's cheek.

"There could at least be something!"

"But there's not. So put it on the news and let's get some more sleep."

"I'm not sleepy," Naruto said. Sasuke shifted, grinding himself into Naruto, kissing down Naruto's jaw before nibbling on his earlobe. "Not now, Teme." Sasuke rolled his head back, shaking it.

"Damn it, Naruto. He's not coming home for hours. It's been two months! I'm horny as hell! Why the fuck not?"

"I've told you, bastard! I can't do it without thinking of Iruka and... him." Sasuke sighed, slipping his fingers through Naruto's.

"He's a grown man, Dobe. If he wants to get his ass tapped, that's his own prerogative."

"Don't talk about him like that! How would you feel if I said Itachi should go get himself drilled?"

"Truth be told, it would probably do him some good. It's good stress relief. That I haven't had for two weeks! Damn it, Naruto, ple—..." Naruto turned around to study him. Sasuke took a deep breath and wrapped his arms around Naruto's waist, leaning down to rub his cheek against Naruto's. "I need you." Sasuke held his breath while Naruto stared at the TV.

"Fine, but we're doing it my room," Naruto said, before Sasuke pushed him off and dragged him towards the bedroom.


"So, tell me about yourself," Kisame said. Itachi kept staring at the chicken salad he'd grabbed, poking at the pieces of lettuce with the plastic fork. "I mean, it's pretty pathetic that I've been coming by here for two months and only know stuff like your name and how old you are and shit." Itachi shrugged.

"What do you want to know?" He took a bite of his salad, popping a piece of chicken into his mouth along with it.

"Shit, I don't know. Do you live alone or with your parents?" Itachi finished chewing, then took a drink from his Coke.

"My parents are dead. I live with my brother."

"Ah... sorry about your parents."

"Don't be. My father was an international crime lord and drug smuggler. When about a dozen international agencies finally got him cornered, he killed my mother and committed suicide. " Kisame watched Itachi as he took another bite of his salad.

"How old were you?"

"Fourteen."

"So who did you live with?" Kisame asked.

"We went into an orphanage."

"You don't have any family?"

"They're all back in Japan. And when they found out about my father, they refused to have anything to do with us. Committing suicide made my father an embarrassment to them, and getting caught pretty much meant anything of my father's, including us, was to be disowned," Itachi said, taking another bite of his salad.

"Oh... so did you get adopted?" Itachi stopped chewing on the piece of chicken in his mouth, staring hard down into the near-empty bowl. He swallowed hard and took a sip of his drink.

"Something like that," he said. Kisame watched Itachi, before taking a sip of his coffee.

"I keep meaning to ask you. What are you doing here?" Itachi looked up, his face expressionless, yet Kisame could see something like surprise in his usually icy eyes. "You just don't seem like the type to be happy with working a cash register as a grease pit like this." Itachi shook his head a little while he finished off his drink.

"It's not about being happy. It's about having money. I have rent to pay, food to buy, a brother to take care of, and classes to pay for whenever I have time to take them," Itachi said.

"What are you studying?" Kisame asked. "When you have time to take the classes, I mean." Itachi looked out the window, before rubbing the back of his neck.

"Biochemistry." Kisame laughed, a few customers turning to stare at him.

"I knew you were too smart for a dump like this. I mean, shit. What do you want to do?" Kisame asked. Itachi stared down at his hands.

"Psychiatry, I guess. I've always liked learning about how people think and what goes on in peoples' heads. Biochemistry isn't too bad, and it prepares you for both the biology and chemistry sections of the MCAT. I doubt I'll ever be able to afford getting that far, though..." Kisame watched Itachi stare at his hands, and was about to speak when Itachi surprised him with a question. "What about you?"

"What do you mean?" Kisame asked.

"What do you do? Where do you live? Your parents, and all the stuff you asked me," Itachi said.

"Well, I live on the military base. I'm a Special Forces instructor for the Navy SEALs and SWCCs. As for my parents, they—" he said, before stopping when he noticed Itachi staring at him, mouth open a little. "You okay there, Kitten?" Itachi nodded, blinking a few times to get his eyes focused again.

"I'm just surprised you have enough rocks in your head to get you past that many classes and tests," Itachi said, pinching the bridge of his nose, massaging it. Kisame grinned.

"I'm full of surprises, Kitten." Itachi glared at him, but Kisame only laughed again, and Itachi's glare softened.

"So, the SEALs and..."

"SWCCs. Swicks. Special Warfare Combatant-craft Crewmen. It's the Navy's second Special Forces division. Basically, they drive all kinds of cool shit boats, and specialize in vessel boarding and the infiltration or exfiltration of other Special Forces units. Such as, if the SEALs or any other Special Forces group ever need to infiltrate somewhere for a mission by water, it's the SWCCs who get them there. And if they need to get picked up, they do that too. And they're pretty much the only people who can do that sort of thing in shallow water, like swamps or beaches, where it takes special crafts to be able to navigate the areas without getting beached. They have almost the same training as SEALs, which is why I handle both of them."

"And you got into that sort of thing... how?" Itachi asked.

"Well, my parents own a major fishing company. They have fleets in the North Atlantic, North Pacific, Baltic, Caspian, Norwegian, Barents, and Greenland Seas, and are about to try to get one started up in the South Pacific. So I was basically working on a ship from the time I could walk. And even more importantly, I was freezing my ass off in the Arctic Circle. I couldn't even count how many ice storms I've worked in. I've only fallen overboard once for being a dumb fuck, and that was when I was ten. The other two times were because of too much water on deck and the ship rolling from a wave. So when I was eighteen, I figured I could either keep fishing, which I'd be doing my entire life, or I could have a break from it and go into the Navy."

"The Navy was a 'break'?"

"Compared to having my testicles turned to ice cubes? And working seventy-two hour shifts hauling in thousand-pound to multi-ton fish nets and lugging around hundred-pound fishing gear? Basic training was a cake walk. It's also why I'm an instructor. It was so easy for me they put my name up as a SEALs candidate. It was more fun than being on board a ship, I guess. Playing sailor boy was alright, but it wasn't me. It was too structured. The SEALs at least gave me the chance to shoot people and blow shit up. It's still the military though, and taking orders finally got to me. So I decided to be an instructor. Now they don't give a fuck what I do, and I can still take an M16 down to the range and relax for the afternoon whenever I want to. And they pay me extra because I know so much about Arctic Circle survival. I know shit that can keep an average human alive for twice as long in Arctic waters. And techniques for increasing the time you can hold your breath underwater. Shit like that. So it all works out in the end. I still get to be close to the ocean since it's in my blood, and my family isn't pissed that I quit the business. They figure that serving the country is the only acceptable reason for not continuing the Hoshigake legacy."

"But don't you need American citizenship to serve?"

"My parents are second generation Japanese. My grandfather moved with my grandmother from Japan to Maine to establish the North Atlantic fleet, which means my father is a natural born citizen. My mother's parents moved right before World War II, and owned a small seafood restaurant in California. The two met when he was flying out to Japan to celebrate my great-grandparents' anniversary or something. Anyways, since both of them have birthright citizenship, it pretty much didn't matter where I was born. But my mother manages the Maine office, so I was born in Eastport, Maine. Having birthright citizenship means it doesn't matter how long I've been on a ship floating north of Russia, or docked in Nowhere, Norway, I'll still have American citizenship. But anyways. There's my life story, Kitten. Now, I have a few more questions."

"Like what?" Itachi asked, frowning. He stared at the empty cup. Kisame grinned, softer than the toothy, predatory grins from before.

"Life before your parents died, your brother, what your favorite color is, stuff like that. But I guess what I'm most curious about is whether or not you'd be willing to spend the rest of the day with me?" Itachi turned to look at him, watching him. "I promise, Kitten, I don't bite," he said. Itachi was quiet for a moment.

"I'd like that," he said, looking away. "If you don't mind driving me around, I guess."

"Did you not drive?" Itachi shook his head.

"I take the bus every morning. It saves gas."

"My place isn't far," Kisame said. "We can walk."

"You said you lived on the military base."

"I do."

"That's ten miles away."

"So?"

"I can't walk ten miles," Itachi said.

"I can carry you," Kisame said, grinning. "And we can stop somewhere for lunch on the way. You need more than a salad. It's no fun playing with my Kitten if I have to be careful not to break him by touching him too hard."

"I won't let you carry me if I have to worry about you being perverted and thinking of touching me the entire way."

"I wasn't thinking about that, Kitten," Kisame said. "It's kind of hot that you were though." Itachi glared at him, but Kisame only knelt down in front of him.

"Hop on." Itachi stared at him.

"I thought you were kidding." Kisame looked behind him, shaking his head.

"Why would I be kidding?"

"Because it's ten miles. Where's your car?"

"At home. I run here every morning. Now come on, Kitten." Kisame grabbed Itachi's thighs and pulled them forward, standing up. Itachi grabbed Kisame's neck to keep from falling backwards as he was lifted, and before he could say anything Kisame was already walking.

"Damn it, put me down!"

"Relax, Kitten. It'll be fun. And you've been on your feet for hours, so relax and get some rest," Kisame said, rubbing Itachi's thighs with his thumbs. Itachi nodded, laying his head on his arm, closing his eyes and feeling the way Kisame's muscles moved beneath his arms and legs. He felt himself begin to fall asleep after a minute, unwillingly admitting to himself that Kisame's scent and moving body, combined with the work of his thumbs, was relaxing to him.

"How long until we get there?" Itachi asked.

"Well, walking, I guess about three hours. If you want me to run, I can make it there in... I don't know, I can run a mile in my gear in six minutes, so with you on my back it will probably be the same. So ten miles will be about an hour. Do you want me to?" Itachi nodded, leaning his head against Kisame's.

"Alright. Hang on tight, Kitten!" Itachi wasn't prepared for the way his entire body violently bounced on Kisame's back. He squeezed as tight as he could, too focused on not letting go to be able to scream for Kisame to stop.


"This is nice," Kakashi said, sipping on his coffee.

"Yes, it is," Iruka said, looking up and smiling before looking back down at the paper he was grading.

"I've been meaning to bring you here for a while now. But it's only like this in the afternoon. It loses the Cafe after about five, and then it's just busy and noisy." Iruka nodded his head, not looking up. Kakashi slipped his foot out of his shoe, smirking underneath his mask. Iruka's eyes clenched shut, his face warming.

"S-stop," Iruka said, trying not to whine.

"I don't think you want me to," Kakashi said, grinding his foot harder.

"I have to finish this grading."

"School is out, they won't care."

"When school isn't out anymore, it will need to have been done."

"You won't have to worry about that anytime soon," Kakashi said, lowering his foot. Iruka stopped writing, looking up.

"Are things really that bad?" Kakashi looked down into his coffee, taking a sip while he dug around in his pocket. When he pulled it out, he had two cards. He slid them across the table to Iruka, who picked them up and looked at them. The first thing he noticed was his and Naruto's pictures on the front, with their names and personal information.

"Those are passes to the military base. I want you to keep them close. Don't worry about clothes, but you both should get together important little heirlooms and keep them in a bag. Small bags, not suitcases. Backpacks, or something. Pack laptops if you have them, and one or two bottles of water. I can't say anything will happen or not, and I don't want to scare you, but...," Kakashi rubbed his foot down Iruka's leg, "I just want you to be ready, just in case." Kakashi smiled, his eye squinting.

"So it's more than just a submarine near New York and a hijacked oil rig...?" Kakashi didn't answer, but reached his hand across the table and played with Iruka's hand.

"Let's go back to my office in a little while," Kakashi said.

"I should probably go back and get my things together."

"Relax, 'ruka. There will be time for that tonight. And nothing may happen at all. I just want you to have those in case something does." Iruka nodded his head, staring down at the ID badges. "Iruka, don't—"

"I'm scared, Kakashi." Kakashi nodded, rubbing his thumb over the back of Iruka's hand.

"I'll make sure you're okay." Kakashi had the same grin on his face. Iruka nodded, and squeezed Kakashi's hand.


Sasuke rolled off of Naruto, pulling him against his chest.

"Fuck," Naruto said, panting. Sasuke smirked, sucking on his earlobe.

"We're not going two months without it again," Sasuke said, kissing up Naruto's jaw. Naruto nodded, his eyes screwed shut. "Love you, Naruto."

"Love you too, bastard," he said, pressing his forehead against Sasuke's chest. Sasuke let his hand trail down Naruto's back, fanning out his fingers as he neared Naruto's ass. "Sasuke, I'm too tired to do it again." He chuckled, running his finger along the inside of one of the cheeks.

"Shower then?" Naruto started to answer, but Sasuke dipped down inside, squeezing the cheek in his palm.

"Fuck yes," Naruto said under a whine.