Disclaimer: The characters and the concept of Naruto belong to their rightful owner. I'm just borrowing them for awhile.
Warnings: Yaoi, swearing and some mention of torture/mutilation. If you're squemish, you probably shouldn't read this installment
Author's Note: Part 7 of the Unravelled series and the final installment. This part will be posted as two chapters, as it's rather long.
Line breaks symbolise a change of scenery or a memory.
Memories are written in Italics
Weapon
Part One
Genma sighed as he finally finished his latest mission report. Wearily, he signed his name, and rolled the scroll up, tied it securely and threw it onto the table with a grunt of disgust. If there was one thing he hated about being back on missions, it was wasting time on the damn reports that followed.
Not only did they eat up time in which he could be doing any number of necessary things, they also ate into his time spent with Raidou.
He smiled at the thought and ran his hands through his hair. In all of his memory, he could never remember being as happy as he was. Raidou had done that. Now that they were lovers, his life was as near to perfect as it would ever get. He was back on missions, his family was happy and healthy and he was with Raidou; he couldn't really ask for more.
After that tense night when Raidou had confessed everything, things had quickly settled into a comfortable rhythm. Raidou had begun the arduous task of healing Genma's heart, and Genma had begun to educate Raidou on what it was like to be loved by another man. And Raidou was a genius student, if he did say so himself.
At first they'd taken things slowly, but after his initial doubts, Raidou had thrown himself into their relationship with the same enthusiasm he had for everything else in his life. His partner loved so completely and fiercely that sometimes it left Genma quite awestruck.
While they'd slipped into their relationship relatively problem free, they had gone slowly and steadily when it came to the sexual side of their partnership. Genma hadn't slept with anyone since before that disastrous mission, and Raidou was still a little nervous when it all came down to it.
Genma had surprised him though. For their first few times, he'd willingly submitted as the bottom, as Raidou wasn't comfortable with the idea of someone being inside of him. But after their first few times, his doubts had been expelled, and it had been Genma's turn to bury himself inside of Raidou as he'd longed to do.
He didn't mind being top or bottom, and neither did Raidou , so their sex life was diverse and interesting, and completely mind-blowing.
Stretching with a smile on his face, Genma listened for some noise that would indicate where his lover was. Hearing noises in the bathroom, he stood up. Turning in the mission report could wait.
Genma received a face full of steam when he opened the door, and he coughed slightly, waving a hand in front of his face.
"Jesus. Raidou? What are you doing in here?" he called as he switched the fan on.
"Wouldn't you like to know?" was the tired reply.
As the steam slowly cleared from the room, he saw that Raidou was lying in a steaming bath, smiling at him. He'd returned from a tough mission not an hour ago, and all good shinobi knew that the best way to soothe aching muscles was a long hot bath. Raidou had taken that to heart, and Genma studied the scarred and strangely beautiful body submerged beneath the water. There were no visible signs of injury, which was something of a relief to him and the worst he could see was a slight scrape over one forearm and a small bruise on his shoulder.
Raidou sat up and Genma watched, fascinated, as water cascaded over taut muscles, trickling down the planes of Raidou's broad chest. He raised his eyes to meet knowing brown ones.
"Join me?"
"How could I resist?" Genma smirked, straightening from his slouched position against the door frame. Smoothly shedding his clothes, he sauntered over to the bath, all too aware of Raidou's eyes following his every movement, and loving it.
They hadn't seen each other for over a week, and they both knew what they wanted and needed, but neither was in any particular hurry to get to it because it felt as if they were suspended in some kind of fantasy world, where all that existed was Genma and Raidou, and the steam floating gently around them.
Raidou shifted in the bath, making room for him, and Genma stepped in and settled himself behind Raidou. With a contented sigh, Raidou moved back against him, settling between his legs, his back pressed to Genma's chest.
Genma wrapped his arms around Raidou's middle and buried his nose in his lover's neck, inhaling deeply.
"Why do I always forget how good you smell," he wondered out loud, mostly to himself.
"I have no idea," was the quiet reply.
"How was your mission? Any dramas?" Genma asked.
"Not bad as far as assassination missions go. What about you?"
Genma grunted and didn't reply, pressing a kiss to a tanned shoulder instead.
"Missed you," he murmured instead.
"Genma? Why didn't you answer the question?"
Genma didn't have to see Raidou's face to know that he was frowning and he sighed inwardly, knowing that Raidou wouldn't let it go until he got an answer. That didn't mean that he'd give in so easily, not even to Raidou.
"It was fine," he lied, swiping his tongue across a scar, pale against the tanned skin. Raidou shivered slightly, and stroked a hand over Genma's forearm.
"Can we not do this, Genma?" Raidou asked with a sigh.
"Do what?"
"This. Where we dance around as issue until it drives us both crazy and we end up fighting."
"I don't consider it fighting. More of a discussion, really when you think about it," he said in an off hand tone, as he caressed Raidou's stomach with his fingers.
"Did you have another fit?" Raidou asked, tensing slightly against Genma.
He had been back on missions for a few months but Tsunade had been reluctant in the first place, because he was still having seizures from time to time and that could be extremely dangerous if he had one whilst on a mission. Genma had argued that plenty of disabled nin went on missions and completed them successfully. Hayate was one of them, and there were others that were blind, deaf, or had speech impediments. Tsunade had reluctantly agreed in the end, but on the provision that he remained on medication.
Much to Genma's disgust, the medication actually worked, proving Tsunade right, but as long as he could go on missions, he was satisfied. And while Raidou was happy for him that he was a successful shinobi once more, he always worried about Genma having a seizure while on duty, despite Genma's best efforts to reassure him
"No, nothing like that. It was nothing."
"Please Genma. I don't want to fight about this." Raidou sounded resigned, and Genma felt instantly guilty.
Raidou was worn down and in need of some rest and some time with him, and here he was making things difficult. He sighed and kissed Raidou's neck again in silent apology.
"I had a...minor disagreement with one of my team mates," he admitted, emphasizing the minor bit.
"What kind of disagreement?"
"We didn't agree on a method of attack, and he implied that I was incapable of functioning properly as a nin after what happened," he replied, unable to keep the tension from his voice.
Raidou sat up and turned as much as the tub would allow to look at him with suspicion in his eyes.
"And? What else?"
Genma was reluctant to continue, but Raidou poked him in the side and he winced.
"He said things. About us. I may have over reacted a little."
Raidou narrowed his eyes.
"What did you do?"
"I punched him. In the face."
Raidou rolled his eyes, and considered him with a thoughtful look on his face.
"What? He asked for it. And besides, it's not like I did that much damage to him. He could still walk." Genma defended himself.
Suddenly Raidou grinned and leant towards him.
"I love it when you get all protective over me," he murmured against his lips, still grinning. "It's hot."
With a groan, Genma crushed his lips to Raidou's in a searing kiss, delving deep and becoming intoxicated with his taste. It was hot, wet and everything he'd been needing.
Raidou pulled back, and smiled at him warmly before settling against him once more and pulling Genma's arms around him once more.
They sat in silence, just drinking in each others presence and letting the hot water soothe aches and pains Genma hadn't even known existed.
Raidou sighed, and Genma rubbed his chest.
"What's wrong? Are you upset with me?"
"No. I'm just tired that's all." Raidou replied, but he seemed distracted, and out of sorts.
Genma tightened his arms around his lover, and pulled him closer.
"Then what's bothering you? Something's wrong." he asked gently, as he kissed Raidou's sweet smelling skin once more.
Raidou rested his head against Genma's, and remained quiet but shifted against him slightly, pressing his buttocks more firmly against Genma's groin. Genma stifled a groan and forced himself not to get too interested. Something was upsetting Raidou, and he refused to be one of those people who put his needs before those of his loved ones. Besides, whenever Raidou was upset about something, Genma was upset too. He hated to see Raidou worried about anything, although the other man hid it well. Raidou had been that way since they were boys, and Genma was probably the only one who could tell when something was up with him. They'd been pulling each other out of trouble since they were kids, and that hadn't changed over the years.
"Hey, come on. Talk to me, Raidou. Whatever it is, we'll sort it out."
Raidou sighed again, and entwined his fingers with Genma's.
"You know that I love you more than anything don't you?" he asked. "That I'd do anything to keep you safe?
"Of course I know. Why as you asking me that?"
"It's just....you're not the only one copping shit for us being together. I've heard people talking about us. About....what we have isn't right," Raidou said quietly.
"Who the fuck cares what they think? What happens between us is isn't any of their business to start with, and I don't regret a minute of the pain I felt, because it meant that I got you. As long as us being together is what we both want, then nothing they say can touch us. I want nothing more than to be with you, and I don't fucking care what anyone thinks of that. But if you're still having doubts about this...."
The thought cut him like a knife but he had learned something of jumping to conclusions during the long process of his rehabilitation so he ignored the flash of pain the very notion caused him and concentrated on what Raidou would say in response.
He was surprised when Raidou twisted in the bath and glared at him fiercely.
"Of course I'm not, baka! I just....sometimes it's hard not to get angry, you know? I'm still angry at myself for jerking you around like I did and what they say just makes it worse."
"It doesn't matter," Genma whispered, leaning his forehead against Raidou's. "None of that matters. As long as we get to come home to each other at the end of the day, they can all go take a flying leap as far as I'm concerned."
"Fuck, Genma...." Raidou sighed again and he pulled Genma close to him, running his hands through his hair.
Genma leant into his lover's touch, satisfied and relieved that he had somehow managed to sort it out with his awkward words that did little to express exactly how strongly he felt about the subject. He sensed a deeper need in Raidou though, a desperation that was a mystery to him. The intensity in Raidou's eyes told him of a deep seated fear that Genma didn't understand and could do nothing about.
When Raidou kissed him, it was dominating and fierce, passionate and rough. Genma responded willingly, and let himself be pulled closer to Raidou's chest. He was panting when the kiss ended, but Raidou didn't seem satisfied with that. He stood up suddenly, and offered a hand to Genma, who appraised him thoughtfully for a moment before he took it. Raidou yanked him to his feet and pulled him closer by his hips.
"Lets take this somewhere more comfortable," he murmured in Genma's ear, and he shivered as that deep, almost smoky voice sent waves of longing throughout his body. It wasn't often that Raidou got so dominant and demanding, but whenever he did Genma turned into a pool of jelly. He always found himself willingly submitting to Raidou without thought, eager to be a little rough and thirsting Raidou's seduction.
As it was, Raidou led him out into the living room, and backed him up against the wall. They were both still wet from the bath, but neither of them cared. Raidou pushed his body against Genmas, who groaned and pulled him in for a kiss. Raidou devoured his mouth, one hand gripping his hair tightly and the other sliding down his leg and hitching it up over his hip. Feeling Raidou's hardness against his own, Genma groaned and wrapped his other leg around Raidou's waist as their kisses became more rough, a battle for dominance. Raidou's hands were on his ass, and all Genma could concentrate on was getting more of Raidou, getting all of him.
Moments later Raidou had tumbled them onto the living room floor and was grinding his hips downwards making Genma forget that anything else existed except Raidou and his wonderful hands, and his lips which fed him such beautiful bliss.
Raidou detangled himself from Genma's arms and legs and began to move his lips lower, using his hands to map his chest, his legs, anything that came within reach. His hands smoothed over Genma's stomach, his lips finding all of his sensitive spots and using them shamelessly. He sucked slowly on his nipples as his hand stroked Genma tauntingly.
Genma couldn't believe the noises he made; his pleas as Raidou's teeth nipped at his inner thighs, his throaty moans when he was buried deep within that hot, wet mouth. His whispers and his cries for more all barely registered when Raidou finally, finally buried himself within him. There was a flare of pain, but that was nothing. Not when Raidou was moving so expertly and so beautifully, hitting all the right places and saying all the right things as he carried Genma higher and higher until there was no where left to go.
When Raidou had screamed his release and after Genma had been reduced to a gibbering wreck and had Raidou lying quietly on his chest and in his arms, they lay there and absorbed the silence.
Genma could tell that Raidou was thinking about something, so he said nothing and left him alone, absorbed as he was in his own thoughts. Raidou really was his world; he had made Genma love himself again, after he'd lost that love when he'd been injured.
Raidou, the boy he had grown up with, the man he had fallen in love with had given Genma back his ability to be happy with himself after his horrible injuries had robbed him of his self-confidence. There weren't enough ways to show his gratitude and love for this man, and even if he had a thousand lifetimes, he knew that it wasn't enough.
Eventually, Raidou stirred and pressed a kiss to his chest before raising his head to look at him.
"I didn't mean to be so rough."
Genma smiled at him and ran a hand through his hair. "I loved it. And I love you."
If Raidou needed his reassurance, then he'd give it to him. He'd give him anything to show that all was well. Nothing else mattered except that they had each other. As he pulled Raidou into another deep kiss, he knew that whatever it was that was bothering Raidou would be revealed in due time. Until then, he'd give his lover everything he needed.
The next day dawned early, and Genma groaned as he rolled over. Raidou was lying awake and staring at the ceiling. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes and squinting at the clock, he turned his head and studied his friend. The other man was somewhere else in his mind because he hadn't even noticed that Genma was awake. The rosy early morning light cast Raidou's scarred cheek into a fascinating patchwork of shadow and light, and he had to resist the urge to run his fingers over it. Raidous eyes were so sad and worried, and vacant and Genma felt slightly nauseous with worry and doubt. Was Raidou having doubts about them? Was he unhappy or unsatisfied?
Genma cleared his throat quietly.
"Hey," he murmured, his voice rough with sleep. "Why're you awake already? Did you have a nightmare?"
Raidou blinked in confusion, then turned his head on the pillow to look at him. A tender smile touched his lips.
"No. Nothing like that."
"Something's upsetting you. Have I done something...."
"No," Raidou said, a bit sharply. Genma blinked in confusion and Raidou sighed.
"I'm sorry. I'm just.....look, I can't talk about it right now, but I promise you that we will. And soon. But I can't now."
Genma's stomach fell, and he was already running over all the possible things that could be the problem when warm fingers caressed his cheek softly.
"It's got nothing to do with us, Genma. You've done nothing wrong, and I'm not upset with you for anything."
Relived, Genma nodded, and reached to pull Raidou close. His lover obliged willingly, pillowing his head upon Genma's chest and wrapping his arm around his waist.
"Okay. I'll wait for as long as you need. Just.....whatever it is, don't let it eat at you so. I don't like seeing you like this."
"I didn't mean to worry you," Raidou murmured, pressing an apologetic kiss to Genma's chest.
"I'll always worry about you Raidou, no matter what you're doing."
"I think you're turning into Iruka," Raidou muttered. "You've got that whole mother hen thing going for you."
Genma grinned into Raidou's hair. "Does that mean Kakashi's going to be trying to get into my pants whenever we meet?"
Raidou raised his head to glare at Genma. "I'd like to see that pervert try. I'd kill him with my bare hands."
Genma grinned back, loving the possessive side of Raidou.
"As much as I'd love to watch you fight my battles babe, I don't think that's anything you have to worry about."
"It better not be."
Genma smiled as he pressed his face into Raidou's hair and breathed deeply. He shifted to position Raidou more comfortably against him, and then winced slighlty at the slight ache deep inside. It had been awhile since he'd had Raidou inside of him, and seeing as he didn't bottom as much as he used to for Raidou anymore, it was an ache which had been forgotten.
Nevertheless, it was a pleasant ache and one he savored. Both of their bodies were scattered with reminders of last night's activities. Raidou had several scratches scoring his back and sides, and Genma was covered with little bruises and red spots where Raidou had bitten and sucked, He had several fingerprints branding his hips and he admired them with smug satisfaction as he ran his fingers over the lightly scabbed scratches that Raidou sported.
He felt good, amazing even, and he knew that he didn't want to get out of bed yet. Carefully he pushed Raidou onto his back and settled his weight onto his lover. Raidou looked up at his with his arms up above his head and Genma framed his face with his hands, smiling down at him.
"You know, we could stay in bed today," he suggested with a devilish grin. "We've done it before."
Raidou smiled slightly up at him and laid a hand on his wrist, caressing slightly with his fingers and shifting his legs to accommodate Genma better.
"I can't. I have a mission to prepare for, and a meeting to get to."
"You could skip it. We've done that before too," he coaxed with a smile as he dropped his head and began to kiss and lick Raidou's neck slowly.
"Mmmm. We have too," Raidou replied distractedly. Genma frowned and nipped at the skin beneath his lips in reprimand. His lover's mind was definitely elsewhere, and he wasn't sure is he liked where it was. In fact, Raidou was borderline melancholy.
"Come on," he grinned. "You need to relax. I know of several ways we can...."
"Not now, Genma," Raidou said abruptly, pushing at him slightly and moving out from underneath him. Confused and a little put off, Genma rolled onto his side and watched as Raidou got up.
"Raidou?"
"I have to get ready. I have things that need to be done. You're not my only priority, Genma," Raidou said with his back to him.
Genma stood before Tsunade's desk waiting for her to stop glaring at him and start talking. Not that he'd like what she had to say, because he had a fair idea of why he had been summoned to her office in the first place.
He knew there would be some kind of consequence for yesterdays brawl, but even as he thought about it, and felt a surge of anger and possessiveness, he knew that he had done the right thing. When he'd taken care of that obnoxious nin, who had apparently been expressing an opinion that many shared, he had shown all those gossip mongers that he wouldn't tolerate anyone talking bad about his partner.
It had worked too, because according to the reports his friends had given him, a lot of the gossip and rumors had stopped. Apparently the worst of their critics had gotten the message. Those that hadn't seen a reason to bad mouth their relationships were seemingly impressed by the work he'd done. Indeed, the newly recruited know-it-all shinobi who had seen fit to argue with him had sported an array of interesting bruises in an assortment of colours. Genma couldn't help but feel a little bit proud of his handy work, and he wasn't ashamed to admit it. It wasn't as if it hadn't been unjustified.
Tsunade finally looked up at him from the mission report, and ran her critical eyes over him. The mission leader had been obligated to put the altercation in his report, but Genma didn't blame him for that. It was inevitable that Tsunade hear about it, because to her, the working relationships between all Konoha shinobi was something that needed to be monitored closely.
"I hope you understand the seriousness of this, Genma. I can't ignore such behavior. When you're out there working missions, not only are you upholding your oath to protect and serve this village, you're promoting our image as well. And I must say, this does little to impress potential clients," Tsunade said, closing the folder and throwing it on her desk. "I can't let this go unpunished. As a result of your actions, you will be suspended from duties without pay for a week, and put on probation for a week following."
"I understand, Hokage-sama."
"I didn't put you back in missions to have all my hard work thrown back in my face, Shirunai. And I won't accept this. If it happens again, I can assure you that the punishment will be much, much worse."
"With all due respect...."
"I'm not finished yet. Furthermore, you will not leave Konoha until I say you can. You are to stay away from Yuki. I'll personally be selecting which missions you can accept until I see that you can properly control your emotions."
"Properly control my emotions? I can assure you...."
"Assure me what, Shirunai? That you're under control? Have you seen the face of the man you attacked? It doesn't speak to me of a man who's under control," she snapped at him.
"Can you blame me though? If you heard the things he said...." Genma protested his indignation and anger getting the better of him.
"I am very much aware of what took place. He has been given a warning. But you attacked him! I'm beginning to think that I was wrong to put you back on active duty!"
"That's hardly....."
"Not another word, Genma! I will hear no more argument about this! Now get out before I change my mind about your punishment and ban you from active duty permanently!!" She shouted.
Genma paled, and stood there for a moment, unable to believe the severity of the punishment she had doled out to him. All this, over one little fight? Since when had anyone been punished so harshly for such a small thing? Normally, group dynamics were left alone to be worked out within a team, but this. This was ridiculous.
Furious and almost shaking at the injustice of it all, Genma stormed out of the office, and teleported out of there before he did something he'd really regret.
Raidou threw his weapons carelessly down onto the coffee table and discarded his muddy flak jacket in the laundry with a grunt of disgust.
All in all, it had been a shitty day; he'd been forced to sit through a three hour long meeting trying his very best not to fall asleep, then had been put through his paces in a surprise fitness assessment. Following that grueling experience, he had been sent on one of the most rotten low rank missions he'd ever had the misfortune of landing.
On his return home, he had heard by chance about the altercation that had taken place between Genma and the Hokage earlier that afternoon. Kakashi had stopped him on the streets to warn him that Genma was in a foul mood, and Raidou was not looking forward to dismantling his lover's anger even though it was something he usually did very well.
At the moment Genma was hyper aware of anything that went on around him, almost like a skittish animal. Ever since the....accident it was almost as if Genma was always on the alert, always watching for something that could hurt him. As if he was constantly on the ready to do battle again, to fight for his life as he had in those nightmarish hours during his captivity. Raidou hated it, and he would do anything to spare his partner and best friend the pain and insecurity he felt. And he wasn't the only one who had noticed the volatile state of Genma's emotions.
Tsunade's punishment of his actions had probably been blown out of proportion by Genma's mind. A perceived attack on himself had Genma lashing out in anyway he could to protect himself, and it was a reaction that worried Raidou to no end.
Raidou had showered and changed and was drinking a cup of strong black coffee when he heard the front door slam closed with a bang that made the walls shake.
Genma was home.
Sighing, Raidou wrapped his hands around the coffee mug and waited for the inevitable.
It was the swearing he heard first. Genma was always swearing, whether it was muttered beneath his breath in sullen tones, or murmured quietly into his ear as they made love, it always had the same effect on Raidou. Genma swearing was hot. And it never failed to make Raidou hunger for a taste of his lover.
He shook his head to clear it of the gathering haze of lust. Neither of them needed to fuck right now. Genma needed to be calmed down, and Raidou needed to hide his growing guilt and anxiety from his lover.
Genma moved into the living room like a caged panther pacing, full of suppressed rage and just waiting for a chance to attack.
"Bad day?" Raidou asked dryly, anticipating the dark glare that was thrown his way.
"That.....That woman!" he fumed. "She's put me on probation! She banned me from leaving Konoha!"
"Well..." Raidou began, but Genma wasn't listening.
"She's dressed me down like I'm some rookie! As if I know nothing about field work!" Genma snapped as he ripped off his hi-ate and ran his hands through his hair, mussing it up.
He should have known that Genma would have reacted this badly. He wasn't usually easy to stir to anger, but when he did, the explosion was always impressive. And Raidou was ashamed to say that the display he was witnessing now was a very big turn on for him.
"Look Genma, I don't think there's any point in getting worked up about this," Raidou told him, raising his voice to be heard over the tirade. "There's nothing that can be done to change it now, so I think that you just need to grin and bear it."
Genma scowled at him.
"Don't patronize me, Raidou! I don't need another person telling me what to do," he snapped.
Raidou was getting irritated himself, and didn't take too well to being spoken to as Genma just had. He glared right back and tried to keep a hold on his own temper. That seemed like all he was doing these days, trying to pacify Genma's frustrations and not giving vent to his own. It was making him stressed and a little bitter. But the last thing their relationship needed was an argument.
"Look, I'm just trying to help to make it easier for you. There's no need to..."
"Yeah, well maybe I don't need your help," Genma snapped back cruelly.
Raidou was taken back by this and not in the least bit hurt. His anger was like a sudden whiplash.
"Then what the hell have we been doing all this time, Genma! All I've been doing is mopping up after you, trying to make you happy and comfortable, and this is what I get for my efforts? All because one little thing went wrong, you're willing to take your anger out on me after everything?" Raidou shouted. "Well fuck you Genma. I don't need this shit from you! Stop being such a pig headed asshole and try looking at things from a different point of view for once!"
Throughout his own rant, Genma was staring at him, completely still and once he'd finished, he still said nothing. With a frustrated sigh, Raidou turned around and pulled his own hi-ate off, struggling to regain his lost equilibrium.
This was ridiculous. There was no point in standing there yelling at each other because they wouldn't get anywhere.
He was just about to leave the room when a hand grabbed his arm and held him still. Raidou tensed, not sure what to expect.
"You're right," Genma said quietly. "You're right and I'm sorry. I've been taking things out on you and you don't deserve that. Forgive me?"
Raidou turned to face him, and looked into his earnest eyes. Gone was most of the anger that had turned his lover into the very picture of a spitting cat, and in its place was the old Genma, boy like in his eagerness and open with his usual honesty.
At least that was something you could rely on with Genma. He was always honest about how he felt. There was no lying, no hiding his emotions and having to second guess him all the time.
Raidou sighed once more and nodded.
"Yeah. Me too," he mumbled, feeling slightly thrown off by the sudden change in direction.
Genma's mouth twitched.
"We're a pair of idiots, aren't we?"
"Speak for yourself."
Genma grinned outright and slid his hand around the back of his neck to pull him closer. Raidou felt a warm curl of heated desire start within the depths of his belly and begin to spread out from there as he pressed against the long length of his lover.
Genma ducked his head and brushed his lips against the pulse point in his neck. Raidou slid his arms around Genma, one arm around his waist and the other snaking up his back to tangle in the silky smooth hair.
He felt inexplicably worn out by Genma's swinging emotions, and even though the pure lust and desire was beginning to pulse throughout his body, the secret that he had sworn to keep was weighing heavily on his heart. It tore at the very soul of him, having to hide things from Genma, but he knew what they said was true; if he knew about the current crisis in Konoha then he'd undoubtedly rush off and get himself killed. Raidou would never be able to live without Genma.
Genma was his heart.
Genma's lips finally found their way to his, and Raidou automatically invaded the offered mouth. It was hot and wet and dirty, and he felt a desperation grip his soul. He needed consolation, and he needed Genma more than anything.
Genma pulled back slightly.
"Wanna fuck?" he mumbled against his mouth.
"Do you even have to ask?" Raidou groaned, pushing Genma back against the wall and started to work on the fastenings of their clothes.
When Genma dropped down onto his knees in front of him, Raidou leaned his head back and buried his hands in Genma's hair, closing his eyes and praying that everything would work out okay in the end.
Genma was in a much better mood as he lounged on the rooftop of the academy the next afternoon. Raidou had been called off to a short guard stint on the wall to finish off another shinobi's shift who had been called away for some reason or another.
He often liked to spend his free time on the roof of the academy. It was comforting and nostalgic listening to the young students talk and argue and learn. He loved to listen to Iruka teach, and often yell at some of the more unruly students.
It was a beautiful day. The sky was so big and blue, with fluffy white clouds wandering their way aimlessly across. The sun was warm on his skin, and he smiled at he remembered last nights argument.
Raidou had been truly pissed at him, and he'd had every right to be. Genma was too stubborn for his own good sometimes, and he knew it.
Still, it was such a heavy and unjust punishment that Genma had to wonder at the reasoning behind it. It was unprecedented to forbid anyone to stray from Konoha. It wasn't like they were embroiled in some war.
Unless they were still worried about his well being (which he doubted) there had to be some underlying reason for such a decision. People, especially shinobi's, were free to come and go as they pleased, unless they had some kind of criminal record.
Genma frowned now. Maybe it was time to do a bit of snooping. It wasn't as if he had anything pressing to do. His mind made up, Genma was getting to his feet when he caught sight of something beneath him. Crouching at the edge of the roof top, he watched as Nara Shikamaru and the blond Kyubbi boy hurried into his line of vision.
"Maaa, hurry up Shikamaru!" Naruto whined impatiently. "Tsunade-baa-chan will beat me blue if we're late for this meeting!"
"Are you sure we even have to be there?" Shikamaru grumbled. "It's not like it's going to matter to us if we skip it."
His interest piqued, Genma moved further along to edge of the roof in order to keep listening.
The blond boy grabbed Shikamaru's arm with a huff of impatience and started to drag him forcibly down the road.
"Baka! The Hokage said that it was a mandatory meeting for all shinobi. If I'm not there, she'll have my ass on a plate!"
"I still don't see why that matters to me...."
Confused, Genma sat down, a frown on his face as he pondered on what he had learned. A mandatory meeting that he wasn't aware of? Surely someone would have mentioned it to him. Maybe Naruto had gotten it wrong. Maybe it was mandatory for all genin to attend or something.
But being a shinobi like he was, Genma couldn't let the information go without further investigation. After all, a good shinobi looked underneath the underneath, and letting information pass by without fully understanding what it meant often led to swift death in the field.
Not liking the little niggling feeling residing in his stomach, Genma set off discreetly trailing the bickering boys.
The Hokage tower was looming up ahead, and Genma kept a safe distance from the boys in order to keep his presence a secret. Looking around though, he could see more shinobi approaching the tower, some in pairs or groups, and some alone. There were even a few Anbu he could spot, and Genma's confusion kept growing.
Like he had been trained to do, Genma blended with the crowd, making sure to avoid the people he knew and keeping to the back. He ended up in one of the massive meeting rooms on the lower floors of the building and the place was packed.
It wasn't hard finding a quieter, dark corner to settle in, where he had a good view of the room and was relatively shielded from the door.
The meeting room was tiered, like the classrooms at the academy, with one row of desks slightly higher than the one before it, all leading down to a large open space below where blackboards stood ready for whoever would be speaking. These rooms were commonly used for mission briefings for Jounin and Anbu alike.
When Tsunade herself entered the room with Shizune and the elders at her heels, Genma stood a little taller. A slow quiet fell over the crowded room, and Genma suddenly caught sight of Raidou sitting down the front with Aobi and Kotetsu.
He tried his best to ignore the flash of heated emotion that shot through his stomach, but it was hard to ignore his emotions when Raidou was involved. Genma had always been able to pick Raidou out in a crowded room, ever since their boyhood days.
Tsunade leaned against one of the tables at the front and surveyed the room with her sharp eyes. Genma shifted a little further into his shadowy corner, not ready to reveal his presence just yet. He breathed a little easier when her eyes skipped on over his hiding place.
"As some of you may be aware, a new threat had been identified that is aimed at all Konoha Shinobi," Tsunade said, her voice resounding clearly in the crowded room.
Genma frowned, confused. Surely he had been that isolated in his training and missions. Surely Raidou would have told him about it? Maybe he didn't know what it was. That had to be it.
"A group of nin, as of yet unidentified, has been attacking teams of Konoha Shinobi. The first person attacked was one Shirunai Genma, as many of you will know."
Genma went abruptly cold and rigid. Unidentified nin? It couldn't be. He had killed them when he had made his escape. He had made sure of it.
"You will tell us what you know, Konoha scum," the masked man straightened, wiping Genma's blood off on a rag.
Genma could hardly think from the pain of his broken fingers, and the carefully placed cuts and burns that covered his body. Just catching his breath was hard enough and his mind was screaming at him for it to be over already, begging for some sort of release from the hell that his torturers were putting him through.
"Nothing to say?" the man sneered as he stood over Genma's broken body. "I'll have you singing nice and loud soon enough..."
"Two other teams have been attacked since then. Three people are dead and five more are in hospital. The situation has gotten past the point where we can pass it off as coincidental," Tsunade continued.
Genma struggled to throw off his memories and concentrate on her words.
"As of now, we're moving into a yellow alert stage. Our shinobi are being targeting for reasons that we don't know. All unnecessary missions that aren't situation around Konoha's territories shall be put on hold until we can ensure the safety of our teams. Until we have gathered more information on these people, Konoha will be closed to all outside traffic."
Tsunade surveyed the room once more, and it was easy to see that she was irritated and worried about the situation.
Genma hadn't heard a whisper of the problems plaguing their shinobi, and that in itself was enough to set his mind spinning with possibilities. Not one whisper of the trouble had reached his ears, and he couldn't help but wonder why. Surely someone around him had heard something of what was going on.
Tsunade had said that three people had died. Three Konoha nin had been murdered in cold blood by the very people he had thought he'd killed.
How could they possibly still be alive?
Genma's hands trembled uncontrollably as he pulled his only kunai from the throat of the man who had tortured him ruthlessly for the past four days. The man had breathed his last breath, and he listened emotionlessly as the air gurgled from his ruined throat. Blood welled from him sluggishly and for a long moment, Genma stared down at the man, swaying dangerously where he stood and trying to control his shivering body.
He could feel the blood coating his hands, both his and his torturer's.
He was pretty sure that most of the bones in his hands were broken. His shoulders had been dislocated time and time again. He burns on his chest felt like they were down to the bone.
The only sound he could hear was the slow drip of blood from the tips of his fingers and his own labored breathing...
"We will be taking volunteers to organize into reconnaissance missions over the next few days. For safety sake, we will only be taking Jounin for these missions, and you will be organized into teams of four or more. There are lists over by the door that you can put your names on."
Tsunde stood and closed her eyes.
"I don't think I need to tell you how serious this situation could be if we let it go on for much longer. All I can do is advice extreme caution to anyone thinking of travelling in the target areas. I'll let the elder's take over explaining the rest."
She stepped back, and Shizune began to whisper in her ear as the elder's began to talk, pointing to areas on a large map.
Genma zoned out of the lecture after that. He didn't need to hear more about the enemies' movements or their tactics. He knew them all, with intimate detail, and he shuddered to think what those other poor souls had suffered through before they'd died.
Hot anger rolled through his body slowly at the thought of those people still being alive. They had taken everything from him, and he had thought that he could move on and feel safe once more, knowing that they were dead.
Not so dead, as it turned out, and the very thought of that brought back all of that anger that he had thought he'd put aside. Now, he wanted revenge. He wanted to rip their throats out in retaliation for what they had done to him, and he didn't care what it took to do so. He would see them die at his hands, if it was the last thing he did.
It was one thing targeting a lone ninja returning from a long mission feeling tired and running low on chakra. It was another to take on a fully rested and angry Jounin.
He hadn't been on his toes then. He had thought he'd been safely out of the hot zone, and that he was home free. All he'd had to do was get back to Konoha and make his report. They'd come at him from the shadows on a moonless night, moving silent and deadly in the shadows. By the time he had realized he was cornered, it had been too late to do anything.
A poisoned dart had taken him down within moments. When he'd awoken, he'd been trussed up expertly inside a small hut with two rooms, cornered by five blood thirsty shinobi of indeterminate village.
He hadn't told them a thing during the four long days they'd held him captive. They had burned and cut and broken his bones, but he hadn't whispered a word of the information that he'd memorized from that scroll.
Fever had raged through his body late on the third night, and hunger made black spots dance in front of his vision. He had been weak and sick, and yet, he had managed to kill them and escape to stagger blindly through the forest in the vague direction that he knew Konoha lay in.
The two days following his escape were almost a blur. Genma had been delirious from fever and injury, barely able to walk let alone run.
"No one is coming for you. No one knows you're even here. You're going to die here and you'll become just another shinobi missing in action."
"M-maybe..." Genma choked out, struggling weakly against the stranglehold the man behind had him in. "But I'll d-die before I te-tell you anything, a-asshole!"
The masked man in from of him leaned forward, and pressed the glowing kunai onto the skin of his chest once more. Genma screamed, kicking out and twisting feebly in an attempt to get away from the searing pain.
"I think that can be arranged for you, dog of Konoha...."
The room was starting to clear, but groups of shinobi still hung around in clusters, some by the door where administrators were standing with the clipboards for people to sign their names onto.
Genma caught sight of Raidou once more, standing near Shizune and Tsunade, talking in low tones. A cold knot of dread and anger weighed down in his stomach at the implications of what he had learned.
They had deliberately kept the information from him. That was what Raidou had been hiding from him. The very man whom he had trusted with his heart had been hiding something that he knew would matter to Genma. The fact that his best friend hadn't thought him worthy of the truth had him so angry he wanted to destroy something.
He approached them quietly, noting cynically that they were too wrapped up in their conversation to notice until he was standing right behind Raidou.
"...I don't think it's a good idea to be sending shinobi out just yet," Raidou was saying. "We just don't have enough Intel on them yet to risk losing more teams...."
"Maybe that's something I can help you with," Genma stated quietly, watching as Raidou turned with wide eyes to look at him.
He didn't want to make a scene in front of everyone, but there was no mistaking the storm of anger and hurt that he felt. As he stared into Raidou's eyes, he wondered how things could be so royally fucked up between them. Genma had thought that once he and Raidou had gotten together, everything would be easy, everything would be simple.
Genma had been wrong.
TBC in part two
Author's Note: I finally got around to writing the last story of this series. It's been a long time coming, and I thought I'd get it finished as one longer story. I hope this has lived up to you expectations, and that you enjoyed reading. Please don't be afraid to let me know what you think!